The Speed badge on Bentley models, which goes back to the 1930s, signifies versions with an extra measure of performance. Typically, Speed versions have been at the top of their respective ranges and today, there are Speed versions for the Bentayga and the Continental. They are now joined by the new Flying Spur Speed, completing Bentley’s portfolio of Grand Tourers.
The Flying Spur Speed, which sits above the S model, has the familiar exterior Speed styling cues like dark tint finishes to the front grilles, headlamps and tail lamps, and of course, Speed badges on the lower wing. Also standard are jewelled fuel and oil filler caps, with the unique 22-inch Speed wheel as standard (a second optional 22-inch sports design is also available).
For customers who want to increase the performance-focused image even further, Bentley also offers its Styling Specification (carbonfibre front splitter, side skirts, rear diffuser and subtle bootlid spoiler) and Blackline Specification which can be included at the time of purchase.
Crafted by hand in high gloss carbonfibre to exact tolerances following an extensive development programme, the Blackline Specification provides a contemporary alternative where most of the brightwork on the exterior of the car is replaced with Blackware.
The Flying Spur Speed’s 6-litre W12 powertrain produces an extra 85 ps/130 Nm for a total output of 635 ps/900 Nm. The improved output enables the car to go from 0 to 100 km/h in a claimed 3.8 seconds, and on to a top speed of 333 km/h. Maximum speed is reached in sixth gear with the same 8-speed ZF dual-clutch transmission as the Continental GT, the overdrive gears (seventh and eighth) being used to reduce fuel consumption when cruising.
The mighty Bentley W12 engine will be retired after 2026.
The clutched system delivers drive to the rear axle and depending on the road conditions and wheel slip, it will then automatically send drive to the front axle as required, as an active all-wheel drive system. With turn-in response also improved, the understeer effect experienced with fixed all-wheel drive is virtually eliminated, making the car feel more balanced overall.
Torque distribution varies according to the selected Drive Dynamics Mode. In Comfort and Bentley modes, the system will send up to 480 Nm of torque to the front axle to offer greater grip and driveability. In Sport, the system limits the available torque to the front axle to 280 Nm, maintaining a higher torque level at the rear for a more dynamic feel.
Electronic All-Wheel Steering is standard, and during low-speed manoeuvres, the system steers the rear wheels in the opposite direction to the front wheels. This has the effect of shortening the wheelbase, reducing the turning circle, increasing agility and making parking noticeably easier too. During high-speed manoeuvres, the system steers the rear wheels in the same direction as the front wheels, increasing stability and making overtaking and lane-changes more assured.
Needless to say, a Bentley cabin has a luxurious environment and for the Flying Spur Speed, there is a new unique colour way including the use of Dinamica to all of the occupant touch points. Bentley uses Dinamica Pure which, compared to regular Dinamica, is made from 73% recycled polyester. There are more Interior colour choices as well.
The dashboard is the same as the other Flying Speed versions but in the driver’s information panel, new performance infotainment graphics can be seen. These take inspiration from luxury chronographs. The luxury theme continues with front and rear seat comfort specification as standard.
Ford has always urged drivers to keep ‘eyes forward and hands on the wheel’. It’s obvious that maintaining attention on the road ahead is important to immediately spot any danger. At the same time, both hands should be on the steering wheel to always be able to take avoiding action in an emergency. That’s why using a mobilephone when driving is dangerous and in many countries, an offence.
Over the years, various technologies have been introduced to help drivers stay focussed ahead. Head-up Displays (HUDs) are one of them, the technology having been taken from fighter aircraft. By projecting important information on the windscreen, the driver can be informed while still looking ahead.
Now Ford researchers have developed a new headlight technology that could help ensure those behind the wheel literally keep their eyes on the road. The new technology can project directions, speed limits or weather information onto the road so the driver keeps looking ahead.
The technology is intended for use at night, of course, as that is when driving can be riskier. Statistics in the UK show that 40% of collisions happen during the hours of darkness, even though there are far fewer people driving than in the daytime.
This risk is increased whenever a driver takes their eyes off the road. A vehicle travelling at 90 km/h covers 25 metres per second, meaning even a short glance at the navigation screen on the dashboard can result in ‘driving blind’ for 10 metres or more. On an unlit road, this could potentially mean missing an important sign or a bend in the road.
Ford’s researchers have therefore come up with a system that projects important information onto the road using high-resolution headlights. The technology could even provide the driver with information about changes in weather, such as rain falling, fog, slippery conditions, or a slippery road ahead.
Connecting the headlight to the navigation system could display upcoming turns, while the width of the vehicle could be projected onto the road, helping the driver to judge whether the vehicle will fit through a gap or into a parking space.
The technology could benefit other road users too. For example, a pedestrian crossing could be projected onto the road, both for the view of the driver and the pedestrian, in situations where the existing road markings are faded or unclear. Other possibilities include showing a path for the driver to follow to ensure cyclists are passed at a safe distance.
“What started as playing around with a projector light and a blank wall could take lighting technologies to a whole new level. There’s the potential now to do so much more than simply illuminate the road ahead, to help reduce the stress involved in driving at night. The driver could get essential information without ever needing to take their eyes off the road,” said Lars Junker, Features and Software, Advanced Driver Assistance Systems, Ford of Europe.
September 16 has long been a special day for Malaysians as it is the day, in 1963, when the East Malaysian states of Sabah and Sarawak and Singapore united with the Federation of Malaya to form Malaysia. And this year, on the 59th anniversary of Malaysia Day, BMW Group Malaysia will also have a special event to celebrate the day as it is also the 50th anniversary year of BMW M, its performance division.
At this joint celebration of Malaysia Day and 50 Jahre M (50 Years of M), BMW M owners and enthusiasts will gather on September 16 to create the largest gathering of BMW M performance vehicles in the country.
Over 150 M vehicles This gathering will be made up of over 150 vehicles from five generations of M models which will make their way into the city centre on the morning of September 16. They will gather at 10 am at the Lalaport Bukit Bintang City Centre along Jalan Hang Tuah in Kuala Lumpur.
Open to the public, the event will also feature a special display of some of the oldest BMW M models in the country. These models have been found after a search by BMW Group Malaysia since May this year.
Other activities at the event will include music performances and engagements with the public who can win exclusive merchandise.
About BMW M 50 years ago, in May 1972, a small business unit with 35 employees was created and initially known as BMW Motorsport GmbH. It was only in 1993 that the present name was established, by which time its role was a fundamental part of the BMW Group, broadening its scope to more than just competition cars. It exemplified the engineers’ expertise in combining authentic motorsport functionality with exclusive and sporty aesthetics, while producing its own memorable models.
Over the past 50 years, BMW M has given the motoring world many iconic performance cars – models like the legendary M1, M3, M5 and M635CSi. Although BMW M focused almost exclusively on the producing performance and racing cars, many BMW enthusiasts were also looking for the BMW M power and badging on road cars.
The M5, followed by the M3, were developed for these enthusiasts and quickly became the most iconic BMW M vehicles in the line-up. They not only won numerous championship victories in touring car racing but also performed impressively on the road.
Some of the BMW M models that have become historical icons of the brand.
BMW M has followed market trends and as enthusiasts came to appreciate SUVs, it developed the X5 M and X6 M, the first M models with 4-wheel drive and turbocharged engines. Today, the BMW X family members with M badges include the X3 M Competition and X4 M Competition.
With the iX M60, the brand is also headed into the electric era. For a company like BMW M, which has built up a reputation producing cars with superlative performance means that the same kind of performance cab be expected – even with electric models.
The iX M60 leads BMW M into the electric era.
“At the BMW Group, M remains the most powerful letter in the world, as it represents our high-performance vehicles born out of pure passion for motorsports. This fascination for power, speed and dynamics has put M on the map since 1972. Fifty years on, we are thrilled to be celebrating the legacy of the BMW Motorsport GmbH with a great community of owners and enthusiasts alike. This milestone is not one we could have achieved without their loyal support throughout these years,” said Hans de Visser, Managing Director of BMW Group Malaysia.
Well over 40% of all Bugatti vehicles ever created have been open-top in design but in the Chiron era, a roadster was never offered. Therefore, as a farewell to the legendary W16 powerplant, Bugatti decided to create a roadster which it has named the W16 Mistral.
“The introduction of the W16 Mistral continues the legacy, and also opens the next chapter in the Bugatti roadster story, inspired by over a century of open-top legends,” said Mate Rimac, CEO of Bugatti Rimac.
Being a very special Chiron, much consideration went into the name it should have. Inspiration came from the mistral, a powerful wind that blows from the Rhone River valley, through the chic towns of the Cote d’Azur in southern France and into the Mediterranean.
Built around the 1,600 ps W16 engine, first used in the Chiron Super Sport 300+, the W16 Mistral offers superlative performance unlike any open-top car. Its design and engineering is completely bespoke. The existing monocoque is not simply cut off above the A-pillars to make way for the new open-top design but has been reengineered and reshaped to create a more rounded silhouette without compromising performance.
“We know the W16 Mistral will always have significance in the story of Bugatti, marking the last time that perhaps the greatest ever automotive powertrain is used in a roadgoing production car. We, as a design team, felt enormous pressure to deliver styling that immediately conveyed this landmark moment, drawing inspiration from some of the most beautiful roadsters in Bugatti history,” said Achim Anscheidt, Bugatti’s Design Director.
As they considered the project, they looked at the 1934 Bugatti Type 57 Roadster Grand Raid (pictured above), a sporting roadster that represented the pinnacle of elegant design. Marked out by its dual aerodynamic headrests, flowing backwards into the bodywork, and a cut down V-shaped windscreen, this particular Grand Raid was effortlessly sophisticated with an understated sportiness. Finished in a duo-tone black and yellow livery, it would provide the perfect inspiration for this watershed moment in the Bugatti story.
The W16 Mistral has colours inspired by the Type 57 Roadster Grand Raid. A warm black with hints of truffle brown and subtle yellow accents can be seen throughout. Not only is it homage to the iconic coachbuilt body, but also to Ettore Bugatti, who chose the black and yellow combination for many of his personal cars.
The open-top hypercar also captures the essence of the Grand Raid’s V-shaped windscreen and evolves it into a modern-day work of art. A curving windscreen that seemingly wraps around the A-pillars, blending seamlessly into the side windows and creating a ‘visor’ effect that hints at the motorsport levels of performance available. The windscreen itself is a marvel of engineering, curved just enough to create the rounded visor design, without distorting the driver’s vision.
The top line of the windscreen and side windows flows purposefully around the side air intakes. This character line then flows back underneath the side glass to shoot through all the way to the front horseshoe grill creating a new three-dimensional character for the famous Bugatti C-line introduced on Chiron.
To keep the body side section slim, but also allow for optimum airflow to the W16, the oil cooler intakes on the side were deliberately separated from the engine air intakes, which now sit on the roof, just behind the occupants.
The two-new roof-mounted engine air scoops also reference the Type 57 Roadster Grand Raid, as well as the first open top Bugatti of the modern era: the Veyron 16.4 Grand Sport. Tighter, more powerful and appearing to leap forwards, the W16 Mistral exhibits an entirely different character.
“To reflect the W16 Mistral’s new character, we also totally reinvented its frontal appearance, in line with the vertical layout of our unique or few-off models like Divo and La Voiture Noire. It’s immediately imbued with a sense of exclusivity; the vertically stacked headlights are completely bespoke and the famous horseshoe grille is reimagined to be much more three-dimensional; both deeper and wider. At the rear, we challenged ourselves to create a striking but also more elegant iteration of Bolide’s X-theme taillight motif, which forever left its mark on the world of automotive design,” Anscheidt explained.
The headlights themselves are intricately shaped, incorporating a 4-light signature that subtly nods to the W16 Mistral’s 4-wheel-drive and 4 turbochargers. But their 3-dimensional surface also functions as an aerodynamic aid that funnels air through the light and out through the wheelarch to improve aerodynamic drag. The wider horseshoe grille allows the high temperature engine radiator to be fully fed purely from one intake, leaving the two side intakes to focus only on providing air to the intercoolers.
The X-taillight, meanwhile, serves the function of venting the side oil coolers through ducts connecting the triangular negative space in between the X beams to the side radiators. Therefore, a pressure drop is created between the side intakes and the outlets at the back, which helps to manage the mid-temperature cooling circuit of the engine most effectively.
Other engineering innovations can be seen in Bugatti’s advanced composite materials are paired with cutting-edge titanium and aluminium 3D-printing for the striking design. A detailed analysis of the W16 Mistral’s dynamic stiffness allowed engineers to develop lightweight solutions that would ensure optimum handling and performance under the most extreme conditions.
The interior follows that in the Chiron, providing an experience that’s both elegant and luxurious, but also functional enough to ensure all information is easily visible at up to 420 km/h. The dedication to material quality remains a hallmark of Bugatti design, with advanced, lightweight titanium, aluminium components milled from a solid block and soft, blemish-free leathers.
An intricate woven leather is used on newly designed door panels, meticulously tested and produced to Bugatti quality standards that envision regular use for over a hundred years into the future. The gear shifter – machined from a solid block of aluminium – features a touch of wood and an amber insert with Rembrandt Bugatti’s famous ‘dancing elephant’ sculpture locked within.
When Bugatti’s last roadster, the Veyron 16.4 Grand Sport Vitesse, set a world speed record of 408.84 km/h in 2013, its 8-litre quad-turbo W16 had 1,200 ps. The W16 Mistral has 1,600ps, making use of the same power unit that propelled the Chiron Super Sport 300+ to a world-record-breaking speed of 490.7 km/h in 2019.
“The union of a roadster format and our W16 powertrain is absolute perfection. With the roof removed, and a pair of large air intakes directly behind your head feeding around 70,000 litres of air through the engine every minute at full bore, driving the W16 Mistral connects you to the intricate workings of this revolutionary powertrain like no other Bugatti to date,” declared Rimac.
Only 99 units of the W16 Mistral will be built, each with an ex-factory pricetag of 5 million euros (about RM22.4 million). Orders are no longer accepted as the entire production run has already been taken, with first deliveries due to being in 2024.
One year ago, at IAA Mobility in Munich, Germany, the BMW Group displayed a special X5 which runs on hydrogen. Known as the iX5 Hydrogen, it uses the X5 bodywork but has a hydrogen fuel-cell electric drivetrain.
The iX5 Hydrogen is under development because BMW sees hydrogen fuel-cell technology as having the potential to become a further pillar in the BMW Group’s drivetrain portfolio for local mobility without CO2 emissions. Provided the gas is produced using renewable energy and the necessary infrastructure is available, this technology can complement the BMW Group’s electrified drivetrain portfolio in future.
Fuel-cell + BMW eDrive technology The iX5 Hydrogen combines fuel-cell technology with a fifth-generation BMW eDrive. The drive system uses hydrogen as fuel by converting it into electricity in a fuel-cell. The electric output can be up to 125 kW/170 bhp, with water vapour as the only emission.
The electric motor was developed from BMW eDrive technology also used in the BMW iX. In coasting overrun and braking phases, it serves as a generator, feeding energy into a power battery. The energy stored in this power battery can deliver a system output of 275 kW/374 bhp to provide the driving experience that the brand has been known for.
The hydrogen needed to supply the fuel cell is stored in two 700-bar tanks (the two cylinders in the picture above) made of carbonfibre reinforced plastic (CFRP), which together hold almost 6 kgs of hydrogen. “Filling up the tanks only takes three to four minutes – so there are no limits on using the BMW iX5 Hydrogen for long distances, with just a few, short stops in-between,” said Juergen Guldner, Head of BMW Group Hydrogen Fuel Cell Technology and Vehicle Projects.
Built in-house The carmaker recently commenced fuel-cell system production at its competence centre in Munich. By the end of this year, it will have a small fleet iX5 Hydrogen SAVs that will be run around the world for test and demonstration purposes
“As a versatile energy source, hydrogen has a key role to play on the road to climate neutrality. And it will also gain substantially in importance as far as personal mobility is concerned. We think hydrogen-powered vehicles are ideally placed technologically to fit alongside battery-electric vehicles and complete the electric mobility picture,” said Oliver Zipse, Chairman of the Board of Management of BMW AG. “By commencing small-scale production of fuel cells today, we are demonstrating the technical maturity of this type of drive system and underscoring its potential for the future.”
“Our many years of research and development work have enabled us to get the very most out of hydrogen technology,” added Frank Weber, Member of the Board of Management of BMW AG, Development. “We have managed to more than double the fuel cell’s continuous output in the second-generation fuel-cell in the BMW iX5 Hydrogen, while weight and size have both decreased drastically.”
So far, the iX Hydrogen prototype has already successfully demonstrated its excellent everyday usability, even at very low temperatures, during the final round of winter testing in Sweden at the start of this year.
Technological expertise, high efficiency standards A chemical reaction takes place in the fuel cell between hydrogen from the tanks and oxygen from the air. Maintaining a steady supply of both elements to the fuel cell’s membrane is of crucial importance for the drive system’s efficiency. In addition to the technological equivalents of features found on combustion engines, such as charge air coolers, air filters, control units and sensors, the BMW Group also developed special hydrogen components for its new fuel cell system. These include the high-speed compressor with turbine and high-voltage coolant pump.
The individual fuel cells required for manufacturing the iX5 Hydrogen are supplied by from the Toyota Motor Corporation, which has been selling a hydrogen fuel-cell electric vehicle (the Mirai) since 2014. The two companies have been collaborating on fuel-cell drive systems since 2013.
Setel users now have a more convenient option of starting refuelling with the ‘One-Tap Fuelling’ feature. This allows them to activate the pump with just one tap upon arrival at all PETRONAS stations nationwide. The new solution is available to the first 1,000 registered Setel users around Malaysia, with a staggered rollout in the next 2 months.
Current Setel users who are interested to receive early bird access can opt-in by posting an Instagram Story or Tweet of their Dah Setel So Far page with the caption: “I want One-Tap Fuelling now”, tag @setel and include the #SetelOneTapFuelling hashtag.
From now until October 4, 2022, they also have a chance to win limited edition Setel gift boxes when they upload their most creative video on Instagram or Twitter showing their experience using the ‘One-Tap Fuelling’ feature’
In the upcoming enhancements, motorists will be able to pre-set their preferred fuelling amount – either by litres or a full tank, in the Preferences page when setting up the new feature. Motorists can also pre-set their preferred payment method, which includes CardTerus for direct payments via a debit or credit card, as well as Setel Share, which allows users to share their Setel Wallet or CardTerus with two others to pay whilst jointly earning Mesra points.
“We are constantly innovating and developing solutions that meet our users’ ever-evolving needs, especially in this endemic period where Malaysians are travelling more frequently than before. Over the past 4 years, our loyal users have continuously raved about their refuelling experience at PETRONAS stations. With this new enhancement that brings about a refuelling journey from the usual 5 clicks to just one tap through a one-time setup, Setel offers a more personalised and faster refuelling journey for its users. Gone are the days of rummaging through wallets for cash or cards to refuel and earn loyalty points,” said Mazlin Erawati Ab Manan, Chief Executive Officer of Setel.
Setel’s contactless service can be used at EV charging stations as well.
Setel has been in the market since July 2018, offering a mobile platform for motorists patronising PETRONAS stations. In recent times, it has also added EV charging for use by those owning electric vehicles. Its services include Setel Express, an in-app service for Setel customers to track their e-commerce deliveries and pick up/drop off parcels at selected PETRONAS stations.
