Bentley Arnage drophead debuts in LA
Convertible über-barge Arnage adds opulence
The new Bentley Arnage Drophead Coupe show car was unveiled at the 2005 Los Angeles Auto Show. Bentley calls it "a true four-seater convertible for the 21st century: a unique blend of classic Bentley design and craftsmanship married to a high-technology platform sourced from the 2005 Model Year Arnage."
It shares the same front end and basic platform as the current Arnage range. The cabin interior and rear section of the car are new, the objective being "to create an opulent and inviting seating area that reflects its status as a car that is at home in Palm Springs or the Riviera."
Bentley chairman Franz-Josef Paefgen said, "The 2005 Arnage range has been extensively re-engineered at significant cost and is a very modern, high-technology saloon. It is natural, therefore, that we would use this base to 
further our reputation as the pre-eminent builder of large, luxury convertibles in the world.
"We had such amazing success with the Bentley Azure, which has developed a cult following although production stopped in 2003. There's no reason why this new Arnage derivative couldn't fill the gap left by the Azure. If customer demand is there, it could go into production within a very short space of time - as early as Spring 2006."
In brief
- Interior cabin now wider than the previous Bentley Azure convertible - in the rear by 20 per cent
- New streamlined convertible body style with raked windscreen and fully automated canvas roof that stows flush in 25 seconds
- Shares the Arnage's platform, wheelbase and powertrain with 6.75-litre twin-turbocharged V8 engine producing 450bhp and 645lb-ft of torque
- Comfort suspension as introduced on the Bentley Arnage R
- Pop-up rollover protection system for occupant safety
- Unique interior styling with new seats, 'floating' armrests and mood lighting
- Show car trimmed in Cotswold and Nautic Blue leather and Burr Oak veneer with a Boxwood inlay.
- Full production capability by Spring 2006 depending on market reaction.
Engineering and specification
Work on the Arnage Drophead Coupe started in January 2004 and the introduction of new technologies and advanced production techniques meant it could be produced quickly.
Chief engineer Ashley Wickham, said, "The real challenge of this programme was to develop a car that had such stylish lines in the timescale we had available. With good planning and close teamwork we were able to combine simultaneous engineering and design with the latest 'fast-track' technologies - it was a great mix of conventional and new thinking.
"For example, right up to the point of engineering, digital data was taken from the clay model's surfaces on a day-by-day basis, even while some parts of the clay were still evolving. This ensured we could transfer the right design feeling directly to the CAD surfaces which are used to make the tooling. And to ensure that the designers could continue to make quick revisions to the car, new technologies were adopted as the programme progressed. The body panels, for example, were actually pressed from special resin-based tools which could be machined in a matter of days."
The twin-turbocharged V8 engine, double-wishbone suspension and extremely rigid body structure of the 2005 Model Year Arnage R provide a state-of-the-art basis for the Drophead Coupe. The show car is powered by a 450bhp version of the Arnage R's 6.75-litre twin-turbocharged intercooled V8 engine and produces 645lb-ft of torque.
The Arnage's ventilated brakes with electronic stability programme, antilock braking system and electronic brake pressure distribution work in conjunction with the independent double wishbone suspension and a computer-controlled adaptive electro-hydraulic damping system, with the aim, said Bentley, of ensuring optimum stability and handling at all times. The Arnage Drophead Coupe also benefits from the introduction of the new comfort suspension system used on the Arnage R.
Stiffening members have been added to the underlying Arnage chassis, constituting the sills and extending into the A-pillars, while underneath the car cross-bracing members reinforce the body shell. The result is a car that, according to Bentley, displays remarkable body stiffness.
Strengthening has also been applied to the body structure behind the rear seats where the roll protection system detects if the car is in danger of inverting. It then deploys two hoops integral to the rear headrests. In conjunction with the strengthened front windshield frame, these are capable of supporting the entire weight of an over-turned car.
Operated hydraulically at the touch of a switch, the three-layer canvas roof stows beneath the rear parcel shelf in 25 seconds, with no ingress into the boot space, which was designed to be able to hold two sets of golf clubs and hand luggage.
Design
Bentley is keen to draw on its heritage, saying that its design team cites the 1955 Park Ward S1 Drophead Coupe and 1995 Azure as its main influences for the Arnage Drophead Coupe show car. Like the '50s convertible, the car has a deep body with a single feature line that runs along both flanks and rises at the rear haunches before spearing off at the rear of the car. Similarly, the Azure's fast and flowing roofline is echoed in the show car's seven-bow canvas roof.
"The Arnage Drophead Coupe is the latest in a long line of much-admired Bentley convertibles and we wanted to reflect that heritage as directly as possible," said Dirk van Braeckel, director of design, Bentley Motors. "The key to a four-seater convertible is that its grace and elegance is on display when the roof is down but it shouldn't lose any of that beauty when it is raised. We think we have struck that balance with the beautiful lines of the roof."
That objective was achieved, explained Bentley's head of exterior design Raul Pires by inclining the windscreen as far back as possible - the car is 35mm lower than an Arnage. "We have tried to make the roof look as 'fast' as we can," he says. "The result is a design that combines fluidity, sportiness and elegance."
New LED rear tail-lamps use technology borrowed from the Continental GT coupe range; while a chrome surround echoes the Arnage front head-lamp units. Further brightwork is found in the form of chrome exhaust finishers and handcrafted chrome bumpers and sills that extend around the entire car and sit alongside unique, six-spoke, 19-inch chrome-finished alloy wheels. The new rear boot section includes prominent wheel arches and a narrowing boot that results in a 'horse shoe' trailing edge that's reminiscent of the first Crewe-built Bentley, the 1946 MK6.
The decision was taken early on in the programme to design a rear-seat compartment that captured the look and feel of earlier Bentley convertibles.
"The S1 Drophead Coupe from 1955 had a wonderfully understated but luxurious interior," said interior design chief Robin Page. "For example, the doors had simple armrests with a leather pad on them and we have reflected that in this car's hide-trimmed armrests that run the length of the cabin sides and appear to be suspended away from the door's actual surface.
"Similarly, we admired the fluted leather in earlier drophead Continentals and echoed that with the vast amounts of warm and inviting leather hide that extends past the seats and onto the parcel shelf, thereby emphasising the impressive dimensions of the rear compartment."
Other touches include the curving shape of the rear seat and arm rest, while indirect lighting casts a warm glow of light behind the door arm rests. The interior is finished with burr oak veneers with a boxwood inlay and Cotswold and Nautic Blue leather. A wooden steering wheel with inlayed chrome rim is unique to the car.
Comment
Wickham said, "There is clearly nothing quite like this car in the world - it is in a niche of its own. By the spring of 2006 we expect to be able to start production if there is sufficient interest from potential customers. It truly is the world's most elegant convertible."
"The launch of this car highlights the flexibility of Bentley's engineering processes, demonstrating yet again that Bentley is the leader when it comes to bespoke cars," said engineering board member Ulrich Eichhorn. "Some of the skills we have at Bentley don't exist anywhere else in the world and it shows in this car."
The car looks quite nice, but I would question why they modelled it after the Arnage and not the Continental GT?
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