When Bentley announced their most expensive creation ever, industry observers expected something special. What they received was something unprecedented: a coachbuilt automobile priced at $18 million that took four years to complete and required the revival of craft techniques that hadn't been practiced in decades.
The Commission Origins
The client, a member of a royal family whose identity is protected by agreements that would survive most legal challenges, wanted something that hadn't existed since the era of grand coachbuilders: a completely bespoke automobile designed from the ground up for their specific requirements, using no components shared with any production vehicle.
Bentley initially hesitated, uncertain whether the project was even feasible with modern manufacturing constraints. But the client's persistence - and willingness to fund whatever research proved necessary - eventually convinced the Crewe manufacturer to attempt what they'd never done before.
The Construction Process
Building the car required bringing retired craftspeople back to work, their skills the only connection to techniques that existed before automation replaced handwork. Body panels were formed using hammers and English wheels rather than press machines. Welding was performed by torch rather than robot. And surfaces were prepared with hand tools that created finishes impossible to replicate any other way.
The wood trim alone required 18 months - a single tree, felled on the client's estate, was dried, cut, and shaped by a craftsman whose family has provided veneers to British luxury manufacturers for five generations. The grain matching across the interior creates continuity that machine-selected materials simply cannot achieve.
The Interior
Entering the vehicle reveals an environment closer to a royal residence than a typical automobile. Leather in colors that required months to develop - the client wanted a shade matching a specific silk from their collection. Metals in finishes that involved multiple plating processes to achieve the desired patina. And textiles woven on looms that produce fabric by the inch rather than by the yard.
The rear compartment features individual seats that recline nearly flat, positioned to allow passengers to face each other for conversation. Entertainment systems include screens that rise from hidden compartments, speakers positioned by acoustic engineers who typically work on concert halls, and connectivity that provides office-quality productivity regardless of location.
The Driving Experience
Despite its size and luxury focus, the vehicle performs. The twin-turbocharged W12 engine produces sufficient power to move the two-and-a-half-ton machine with authority. The suspension, developed specifically for this application, can simultaneously provide comfort rivaling the finest sedans and handling precision that surprises anyone expecting a wallowing luxury barge.
Active noise cancellation monitors the environment thousands of times per second, producing counter-frequencies that eliminate unwanted sound before it reaches occupants. The result is silence so complete that passengers initially find it disorienting - our brains expect road noise that simply isn't there.
The Price in Context
At $18 million, this Bentley costs more than many private jets - a comparison that seems absurd until you consider what it purchases. This isn't a car with options selected from a catalog. It's a car without any compromises, created specifically for one client using techniques that can never be replicated at scale.
Whether such expense is justifiable is a question each observer must answer personally. But for the client, who waited four years and funded research that will never apply to any other project, the price represents access to something genuinely unique in a world where uniqueness is increasingly difficult to find.