Car Throttle

Right across the street from Charles Agapiou Bentley/Rolls Royce on Santa Monica Blvd is the kind of dealership you could just stand and drool in for a while.  Heritage Classics is exactly what it says on the label: a purveyor of high-end desirable classics parked wall to wall.  Unlike a lot of classic dealers, this one didn't seem to specialize in one marque or even genre: there was everything from a classic Porsche 356 to a Cadillac Eldorado.  But what lured me in the door first was this... A Ferrari 330GTC, what I think is probably the prettiest front-engine V12 Ferrari ever made.  Styling by Pininfarina, a 4.0L Colombo V12 breathing through six carbs up front, a five-speed, two seats and independent suspension.  The

I'm almost done with the Los Angeles car spotting articles.  In these last two sections, we'll be looking at two dealers in Hollywood to give you a taste of the good life.  Going down Santa Monica Blvd in West Hollywood, in search of an In-N-Out Burger (which I can report is just as good as everyone says it is!), I saw this Rolls Royce Corniche convertible parked curbside.  Hmm... And a jet-black Bentley Turbo R behind it.  If there's a better name for a Bentley out there than Turbo R, I'm not aware of it.  I got out of the car and wandered up the sidewalk into the front lot of Charles Agapiou Ltd Bentley/Rolls Servicing and Sales.  A dealer and shop that specializes in

Sometimes I realize I have a certain lack of perspective when it comes to the car thing.  Perhaps it's a regional thing.  I'm in Los Angeles for a few days (a family member is getting married), and some of the cars that raise eyebrows in Raleigh would be taxis around here.  If there's an area in the US that embraces car culture more fully than the city of Angels, I'm not sure what it is.  This is a place where a C-class Mercedes is like a Taurus, and you routinely see more than ten Bentleys a day.  It's special.  My shutter finger has been getting tired.  Check it out. See, in the middle of the eastern seaboard, a CL55 AMG Supercharged is the kind of

This week saw spy shots of Mercedes’ new CLS with a bigger boot. Usually, any saloon or hatchback that comes with a bigger boot is classed in the UK as an estate and estate cars are never usually very cool. They were bought by anyone wanting to lug loads to the dump, collect tons of flat pack furniture from Ikea or for extra space so the dog can come along with the family. But the CLS is a four-door coupe officially which means the CLS seen here is a Shooting Brake. Here’s a little history lesson. ‘Shooting brake’ is a term to describe a two-box car body style that combined coupe features and estate features. The name ‘Brake’ in this case doesn’t mean the

Sales of luxury cars are increasingly greatly, and that is never more evident than at Rolls-Royce. With the ultra-expensive Phantom being the only model in in the lineup, the BMW 7-Series-based Ghost was introduced in order to increase sales. As can be expected, it is less expensive or in Rolls-Royce-speak more "accessible. Volkswagen-owned Bentley succeeded brilliantly in adding new models - the Continental lineup has been a huge success in growing sales for the brand. The same thing looks to be happening at Rolls-Royce with the Ghost - for 2010 Rolls-Royce is set to double its output over 2009. Expect the final tally to come in at around 2,500 units for the year, with profitability way up. With a solid success in the Ghost, Rolls-Royce isn't finished

Ultra-luxury cars like Bentley and Rolls-Royce aren't for customers particularly interested in hiding their wealth or not appearing ostentatious. Neither are exotics from Ferrari, Lamborghini and others. However, some customers choose to take things far further to make outrageous statements. Mansory is one such company that has been happy to oblige the tasteless. Remember the Mansory Rolls-Royce Ghost? You'd probably rather not. However, the company is seeking to offer a toned down offering, dubbed White Ghost. With a hint of sarcasm, we'd have to say that we think the Rolls-Royce Ghost is pretty good as it stands. However, there is always those who like to try to improve on near-perfection. In that regard, as far as the exterior, the White Ghost comes far closer than anything Mansory has tried with

The Bentley Mulsanne was unveiled a few months ago for the first time at the Pebble Beach Concours d'Elegance. At its introduction, Bentley made clear that the Mulsanne was aiming at a segment higher than the Arnage. They even made sure in the press release to never refer to to the Mulsanne as a "replacement" for the Arnage.  Now, Bentley has released official details on the super-sedan for its home market of the United Kingdom. The Mulsanne is a very impressive new Bentley model, being the first all-new flagship exclusive to Bentley (as in, not shared with Rolls-Royce) in a long time.  It seems as if the market agrees: Stuart McCullough, Member of the Board for Sales & Marketing at Bentley says that "Even at this very early

The amount of introduced and planned hybrids, electric vehicles and range-extended electric vehicles has been quite numerous. It's a move that Rolls-Royce doesn't want to miss out on. Chief Executive Officer Tom Purves has commented on the possibility of an all-electric Rolls-Royce - and a Phantom has even been spotted with General Motors Hybrid badges (probably a joke). The Ghost is the brand's newest model, and is projected to more than double Rolls-Royce's brand volume. Given the increased amount of sales that Rolls-Royce wants to attract, Autocar says that a Ghost Hybrid is in the works. It isn't like producing it will be much of a stretch developmentally - the Ghost shares a platform and some components with the BMW 7-Series. BMW recently introduced a

Many prominent figures in need of protection opt for manufacturer produced armored vehicles like the Mercedes-Benz S-Class (S-Guard) and BMW 7-Series Security. When those cars just aren't good enough, upscale German armor company Mutec is happy to oblige. They're aiming to demonstrate their safety prowess on one of the world's most expensive and exclusive sedans - the Rolls-Royce Phantom. When it comes to explosions and seeing things destroyed, the thinking is - the  more outrageous, the better. Things like this are always interesting, however I don't really enjoy such expensive machinery being destroyed. It's safe (no pun intended) to say then that they are trying to make a statement. Rolls-Royce fans, look away! If a picture is worth a thousand words, a video has got to be a million! httpvh://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KTTCMT1e0BE

Rumors of an electric Rolls-Royce Phantom are swirling again at the Goodwood Festival. We've been hearing that the possibility is under serious consideration by the top brass at Rolls-Royce. Rolls-Royce CEO Tom Purves has talked about the subject, saying: “Many of our customers do small mileages exclusively in the city….for these customers, an electric Rolls-Royce would be ideal…..we stand for unmatched refinement and you can’t get a quieter and less intrusive engine than a well engineered electric motor…..we also stand for strong and instant torque – and an electric motor delivers maximum torque instantly. The ‘waftability’ would be fantastic.” Sounds like a pretty strong endorsement to me. Meanwhile, Auto Express is saying that a Rolls-Royce spokesman confirmed, while speaking to the press, that an electric Phantom is