I have to say I'm torn here.
Bentley isn't British anymore - it's German.
Rolls Royce isn't British anymore - it's German.
Is there an echo in here?
One's owned by VW, the other by BMW. What's not surprising if you think about it is that Bentley is still conservative yet beautiful because they're designed by VW.
Rolls on the other hand are more daring and therefore tend to be...well...ugly like many recent BMWs. They're both impressive machines though and how can they not be when base prices for this segment start near $350,000.
Drophead/ Phantom Coupe
Pros:
1. It has presence. Any car of this size has presence and that is an unmistakable cue to all of us minions that we cannot afford this car.
2. It's a BMW. This could also be a con depending on how you look at it but I'm going to chalk it up in the Pro column for obvious performance and build quality points.
3. BMW is trying to make this segment new-er than it's Bentley cousin. I have to give them credit for trying a new look, particularly in the face. It's not beautiful though as the Phantom line has never been pretty. It definitley has a more menacing look and may fit the coupe better than the sedan. Still not sure if this is a Pro so I'll also make it a Con.
Cons:
1. It's ugly. Though they get a few points for trying to make this car different than the Rolls and Bentleys of the past, it's still - um - unrefined. The face is ghost-like in it's simplicity. There is a point where you make the face, eyes, etc. too small and (I'm going to make up a new term here) you "Underface" it. You can also "Overface" by putting GIANT headlights etc. on there. My point is, for the size of the car the graphics have always been lacking and create weird dead space (which is why they had to throw the big, round light in there) and a flat, awkward appearance.
2. It's too narrow for it's height. The Phantom had a similar problem but I gave it a pass because it's a huuuge car. The rear view looks puffed up - like a puffer fish and is also "Underfaced" for the amount of surface which surrounds the lights. There is no depth of surface at the rear. At least the Bentley has a distinct separation from the trunk to the rear lights. The Phantom Coupe is long, narrow and too tall. As much as they'd like to make it nine feet wide, they can't.
3. It's huuuge. Ok, I already put this in the Pro column but one aspect of it's huuuge-ness that is a detractor are the overall proportions of the wheelbase, length and width. It tends to have that "Hot Wheels" DUB look too easily. It's cartoon-like in it's proportions and even though BMW had a giant package to work with and made it big on purpose to make us feel inadequate, they went too far.
Brooklands
Pros:
1. Gorgeous - period.
2. Great volume in the surfaces. Nice, subtle character lines.
3. Face is all Bentley (and Rolls for that matter) but the Bentley grill has always been nicer - less boxy. Power bulge proportion fits overall front better than blunt Rolls.
4. Not overly Gigantic. It's a big car but it just seems like a well-proportioned car scaled up. Not one that has a pituitary growth problem.
5. It's lean and sporting, just the way a Bentley should be.
Cons:
1. It's a Volkswagen. You can take this many ways but I'm just going to leave it at the reliability level. I guess it couldn't be worse than the real Bentleys of old though!
2. It's a Volkswagen. Alright, there is one more reason why this is bad. VWs are clean and are free of any jewelry whatsoever. Take the New, New Beetle for instance: No shoulder, windows are flush, no accent/contrast color details, etc, etc. This has always reminded me of the R/C car body. Modern cars are all about the integrated, painted bumper and lack any detail. THIS IS A BENTLEY!!! It needs some jewelry for goodness sake. Give me some chrome details around the lights, grill, vents, blah, blah, blah. Audi does a better job than Bentley in this area - that's not right.
3. Its siblings are Volkswagens, too. My car designer friend loves the Continental. I've always told him it isn't a Bentley though and would make a great VW - scaled down of course. He asked me why I didn't like it. I told him I did like it - it's just not a Bentley. The Continental is a beautiful car but it lacks the detail and money-oozing aspects of a Bentley. The Flying Spur sedan has this problem worse than any of the others though. The only modern Bentley left that accomplishes this is the Arnage T because it still maintains these details I mentioned. Its perceived quality is twice that of the Flying Spur even though they both MSRP in the $200k range.
Regardless of which car I like better, I would never buy either one (unless I was doing my V12 BioBentley conversion or I had a new rap video debuting on Mtv). But most people seem to be split evenly between the two and which one really is the "King of the Coupes".
5 comments:
I must say, that though I think the Rolls is more impressive, the Bentley is definitely the prettier and more graceful/elegant of the 2. Is one better than the other? I don’t know if I can make that call, as it seems to come down to personal preference at this point. But the Bentley definitely has the better proportions and more graceful profile, that’s for sure.
The thing I do like about the Rolls is the attempt to convey a sense of moderness through things like the slim profile lamps. Though they may leave a lot of blank space on the front as a result, there is something appealing about that as well. Though the Bentley is beautiful in a more classical way, I do appreciate the almost brutal nature of the Rolls. Definitely the bolder and more assertive of the 2, which is certainly a reflection of BMW’s influence.
Only time will tell which design holds up, but I think it’s safe to say that the Bentley stand the test of time better, if for no other reason than its more classical design approach. Though I do agree that it certainly could use a bit more jewelry:)
When I first saw this new Bentley design, I thought is was an old car. This is a huge negative. The car lacks any modern feel. The grill and headlights are dated. I feel the target buyer for this car was limited to 65 years old to dead. Bentley needs to step up to the plate and hit a home run....which is exactly what ROLLs did with their coupe. It is bold and modern and feels far more special than the sum of its parts. It truly stand out in a crowd of luxury autos and the aspiring target buyer could be ANY age. I love the Rolls!!
dc
I agree with DC that because the Rolls has at least something new going on it will appeal to a younger buyer. This does add something fresh to the segment and for that reason, I applaud BMW for trying something new.
I personally have never thought the Phantom line has ever been pretty though. It's similar to the 3-series. The sedan is ugly. It's reflections are totally jacked up and some the graphics have awkward tangencies and no connection to the brand. On the other hand, the coupe is very well done. What's the difference? They took the form language and did with it what they already do well. Great proportion, clean surfacing, distinctive graphics. Sure you could argue that they too don't push the limits of design by doing this, but the 3 series coupe is still one of the most modern cars on the road.
I think, once again, the Phantom was such a big debut for BMW that there just may have been too many cooks in the kitchen. I don't believe the Phantom was the best they came up with at the time.
Oh! And DC - aren't you the one that likes "Ugly" cars anyways?
: )
i never said I like ugly cars..... although the Aztek is growing on me. I said that ugly cars are the big trend these days. the uglier and more kit carish cars get, the more people like them!
dc
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