Bentley Bacalar concept: first drive of £1.5m roadster

Even under grey skies, the Bacalar looks stunning. Bentley’s head of colour and trim, Maria Mulder, is on hand to talk me around the car. She says the company normally uses the outside viewing garden of the Seat studio in Barcelona to sign-off on paint finishes and make sure they will work in brighter climates – Crewe can be a bit gloomy, apparently – but the show car’s Yellow Flame hue looks stunning in the drizzle. It contains ash made from rice husks for an ethically homologated metallic effect, and up close it looks almost like a flowing liquid.

The absence of any kind of a roof is more of an issue, given the persistent rain. I’m concerned for the beautiful quilted seats, each one of which has more than 148,000 individual stitches, and the wool cloth facings. (The riverwood dashboard, made from timber recovered from 5000-year-old peat bogs, must be already acclimatised.) But Mulder says all trim materials have been chosen to meet stringent Volkswagen Group standards for both durability and short-term water resistance. “We can’t sell somebody a car that won’t withstand a shower,” she says.Apparently, it’s why Bentley doesn’t offer the softest aniline leather in the Continental GTC.

Of course, Bacalar buyers have something close to free choice when it comes to colours and trim materials. Mulder has been leading the online specification sessions. “Some buyers have ended up with very different choices than the ones they started with or perhaps thought they would make,” she says.

If a buyer wanted to choose a less tough material, they could do, says Mulder. Anyone doing so will have to sign a form saying they take on the risk of discolouration. But there’s no way to make changes that would have a detrimental effect on safety or the Bacalar’s core functionality. One customer has asked for a wooden-rimmed steering wheel, something that Bentley’s engineers are still struggling to deliver given the amount of electronics within the boss.

My driving experience at Goodwood is limited but, even at a gentle pace, the fundamental appeal of the Bacalar is obvious. Forget the claims of a 3.5sec 0-60mph time and ability to go past 200mph: I suspect very few owners will experience either of those statistics more than once, especially given how breezy the cabin gets at less than a quarter of the intended top speed.

The Bacalar is much happier as a cruiser, one that is going to be driven on the muscular mid-range of the wuffly 6.0-litre W12 engine. It will certainly be up for travelling faster. The 650bhp engine will appreciate harder use and Bentley’s dual-clutch transmission is one the quickest and cleanest-shifting in this part of the market. GTC underpinnings also mean the Bacalar shares the same dynamic-sharpening tech, including air springs and 48V active anti-roll. But it definitely feels like a car that will be better appreciated at lower speeds, not least because it will make it easier to see all the jealous glances.

The Bacalar is the first modern coachbuilt Bentley, but we’re promised it won’t be the last.