Introduced in 1991, the Continental R was the first Bentley in 26 years to not share a body style with a concurrent Rolls-Royce. The elegant two-door coachwork, inspired by the highly collectable Continental R-Type of the 1950s, was styled by John Heffernan and Ken Greenley. Five years later Bentley introduced a short-wheelbase version dubbed the Continental T that was equipped with an uprated engine developing 420 hp and an impressive 650 foot-pounds of torque available at just 2,200 rpm.
Bentley customers expressed interest in equipping the “wide-body” Continental R with the T’s more powerful engine. The Continental R Mulliner was thus introduced at the 1999 Geneva Salon. The name was in homage to H. J. Mulliner, the British coachbuilder responsible for the original R-Type’s breathtaking fastback bodywork. Individually tailored to order, the R Mulliner was produced in a modest quantity of 131 examples.
To commemorate the turn of the century, Bentley built ten Continental R Millennium Editions, all of which were delivered to the North American market. The Millennium Edition was based on the Continental R Mulliner and featured elegant and elaborate wood trim elements, a green starter button, a stainless-steel laser-cut matrix grille, and 18-inch chromed alloy wheels. The Millennium Edition reportedly cost an additional $20,000 over the price of the Continental R Mulliner.
This Millennium Edition is the penultimate example of the ten built and is attractively finished in Silver Storm over Cinder leather. Options include a burled wood dashboard, embroidered Bentley badges on the headrests, heated front seats with memory package, a chrome shift knob, wood veneers on the steering wheel, aluminum pedals, and the spare wheel kit. With less than 18,000 miles from new, this Millennium Edition is in well-preserved condition and offers the performance of the Continental R Mulliner with even greater exclusivity.
| type | Series Production Car |
| built at | Crewe, England |
| production | 10 |
| price $ | $ 299,900 |
| engine | Turbocharged V8 |
| displacement | 6750 cc / 411.9 in³ |
| power | 287.1 kw / 385.0 bhp @ 4000 rpm |
| specific output | 57.04 bhp per litre |
| bhp/weight | 157.14 bhp per tonne |
| torque | 750 nm / 553.2 ft lbs @ 2000 rpm |
| curb weight | 2450 kg / 5401 lbs |
| wheelbase | 3061 mm / 120.5 in |
| length | 5350 mm / 210.6 in |
| width | 2058 mm / 81.0 in |
| height | 1462 mm / 57.6 in |
| top speed | ~249.4 kph / 155.0 mph |
| 0 – 60 mph | ~6.0 second |
