The market is brimming with choices if you have $2 million to spend on a new car. You can get a McLaren Speedtail, an Aston Martin Valkyrie, or maybe an all-electric Lotus Evie for about $2 million, give or take. But for that money, the Bentley Chimneysis an excellent choice — the finest example of old-school coachbuilding brought to life by Bentley’s Mulliner custom division.
Sure, folks could argue the Mulliner Batur offers the same exclusivity and personalization for about the same amount of cash — not to mention a hardtop roof for all-season driving. Weather considerations aside, you don’t buy a Bacalar for a daily driver, and few speedsters offer the grand-touring capabilities of the Bacalar thanks to its Continental GT underpinnings.
Besides its stellar roofless configuration, there are more reasons why the Bentley Bacalar costs nearly $2 million — and it starts with what’s under the hood.
Power when you need it
The Bentley Bacalar has an updated version of the brand’s 6.0-liter twin-turbocharged W12 engine generating 650 horsepower and 667 foot-pounds of torque. It sends power to all four wheels using an 8-speed dual-clutch automatic gearbox and a rear-biased active all-wheel drive system. The drivetrain could adjust the front-rear torque distribution to maximize grip and handling. Furthermore, Bacalar has a 48V dynamic ride system with air suspension to optimize agility and driving comfort.
Bacalar is not the most potent Bentley ever made (that distinction belongs to Mulliner Batur with its 730-horsepower W12 engine). Still, it is the fastest roofless or convertible Bentley to leave the automaker’s dedicated production facility in Crewe. The Bacalar could sprint 0-60 mph in about 3.5 seconds and reach a 200+ mph top speed (per Supercar World). And with no roof to drown the noise, we could only imagine the sensation of driving a Bacalar as “spectacular.”
Bespoke exclusivity
Only 12 Bentley Bacalars would exist, making it more exclusive than the Mulliner Batur’s 18-car production run. Moreover, no two Bacalars would look the same. “Designing a Bacalar is an exercise in imagination, with the material, color, and finish of practically every interior and exterior surface being bespoke,” said Maria Mulder, Head of Color, Materials, and Finishes at Bentley Mulliner.
Each car is tailor-made for the lucky owners, and buyers can choose any material in any color or finish for every touch-point or panel in the hand-crafted interior. In addition, the carbon fiber body is lovingly coach-built by the specialists at Bentley Mulliner, like building a car in the 1930s.
The automaker unveiled the first eight Bacalars in August 2022. One particular Bacalar in Sunset Orange paint made its debut at the Goodwood Festival of Speed, and it’s the same car on this page. Some may not be big fans of its orange hue, but the exquisite detailing and limited production numbers make it worth every penny.
