► Super-luxe drop-top built by Mulliner
► Only 16 will be made
► Sends off the W12 in style
This is the Bentley Batur Convertible, the really rather special follow-up to the million-pound Batur Coupe that was released into the world in 2023. Like its hardtop sibling, the two-seat Batur Convertible is an ultra-limited edition that’s built by Bentley’s in-house bespoke division, Mulliner. More significantly, it’s also the last car to be fitted with the iconic 6.0-litre W12 engine.
That engine was first seen in 2003 when the original Continental GT was launched. With two turbos bolted on, the W12 gave the Conti an immense, effortless turn of speed that echoed the performance of iconic vintage Bentleys such as the Speed Six and 8-Litre. Indeed, it was a key factor in the unprecedented success of the Continental GT – it’s the car that saved Bentley’s bacon, after all.
In the Batur Convertible, the W12 produces 740bhp – 40% more power than the first version – and a towering 738lb/ft of torque. The Batur Coupe has the same engine, delivering a 0-62mph time of 3.4secs and a top speed of 209mph, figures that make it the fastest Bentley ever short of Le Mans-winning Speed 8. Expect similar results for the Convertible.
Like the Batur Coupe – and the earlier Bacalar roadster – the Batur Convertible is based on the same platform as the current, third-generation Continental GT but wears a completely bespoke body. Designed and crafted by Mulliner, it’s intended as a tribute to, and celebration of the coach built open top cars that made Bentley’s early reputation.
Bentley says the Batur’s styling informs that of its next generation of cars, including EVs. At the front, its bonnet line slopes down more steeply to a shallower grille than is seen on the Conti; the rear is more angular with a pronounced spoiler integrated into the boot lid; there are slimline head and tail lights. It’s a very handsome thing, a future we can get behind.
The Convertible features a body-colour “airbridge” behind the seats, spanning the tops of tapered cowls that slope down towards the rear. The fabric roof raises and lowers in 19secs at speeds up to 30mph; when raised, Bentley claims it creates a “cossetting environment.” As you’d expect in a super-luxe interior.
The Batur’s dashboard is familiar from the Conti GT, though the centre console design is unique to the car. Thankfully, there are actual buttons on it – it seems owners at this level aren’t keen on haptic pads.
The centrepiece is the 3D printed rose gold encircling the drive mode selector that’s made in Birmingham’s world-famous Jewellery Quarter. Practical considerations haven’t been overlooked, either. Behind the two seats, there’s a semi-enclosed storage space for bags and coats.
Just 16 Batur Convertibles will be built, matching the number of Coupes. As you’d expect, each buyer has virtually completely free rein to specify – or “co-create,” as Bentley puts it – their car, working with Mulliner’s design team.
Colour choice is “infinite” and can be mixed and matched across every part of the car’s bodywork. Any combination of exterior metalwork – including titanium – can be used. Interior finishes are limited more by imagination than anything else.
The car pictured here is the engineering prototype. It’s finished in Vermilllion – gloss on the upper half, satin on the lower half – with carbon fibre front splitter, side skirts and diffuser. Other elements are finished in various sorts of titanium with black and Vermillion accents.
How deep do your pockets need to be? Extremely. Very extremely. The Coupe cost £1.65 million even before you went nuts on the “specially created Mulliner visualiser.”
