Rolls-Royce or Bentley? Who did the more interesting Japan-exclusive?
The relationship between Britain and Japan go back several centuries. These two industrious island-nations have closer historical ties than people realise. But today, we’re not here for a history lesson. We’re here to discuss the Japan-exclusive models from Bentley and Rolls-Royce. Both German-owned British marques made these releases independently. They’re not exactly comparable cars, but they’re not too far off either. Let’s see what each one did.
Bentley Mulliner Continental GT V8 Equinox Edition
Bentley went first. On the 15th of April 2021, they unveiled the Continental GT V8 Equinox Edition.
This Continental GT V8 was worked on by Bentley Mulliner, their custom coachbuilding arm. The entire monochrome theme of the car is based around black, silver and white. It can be optioned with either an Onyx (black) or Glacier White exterior paint finish. It comes with the Styling Specification (front splitter, rear diffuser, boot lip spoiler, side sills) in high-gloss black carbon-fibre. A Moonbeam (silver) pinstripe accent is hand-painted on the edge of the carbon fibre pieces. The 22″ Mulliner Driving Specifications wheels are finished in dark metallic Tungsten paint.
Inside, the Continental GT V8 Equinox Edition gets a silver accent hide on the headrest and seat edge panels, which contrasts against the main Beluga hide. Contrast stitching in silver is applied on the seats. The steering wheel has dual-finish veneers (Piano Moonbeam over Grand Black). There’s also deep pile Mulliner floor mats.
Bespoke Rolls-Royce Dawn with Kengo Kuma
Rolls-Royce worked with architect Kengo Kuma and property developers Westbank for their Japan-exclusive Bespoke Dawn. The whole car is made to reflect “The Kita”, a new high-end residence in Tokyo. There’s only one of these, so it’s already a much more exclusive vehicle than the Bentley we mentioned above. It’s also V12-powered and a convertible as opposed to the V8-powered coupé from Bentley.
The Bespoke Dawn is painted in Silver Haze, which has a bronze sheen in direct sunlight. The hood of the car is finished in Silver and there’s a Black coachline.
Inside, open-pore Royal Walnut panelling is found on the rear deck. Selby Grey leather upholstery covers the interior with Arctic White and Black accents. Seatbelts are Slate Grey in colour.
The dashboard and fascia of this Rolls-Royce is gradated, transitioning from Piano Selby Grey to Piano Black. A lattice motif is applied in embroidery to the front headrests and “waterfall” between the rear seats. A Bespoke clock and umbrella are colour matched to the interior.
