PGA Cars to Go Appointment-Basis Only for Both Sales and Service

On Monday, May 18, 2020, the official and exclusive importer and distributor of Porsche, Audi, Lamborghini, and Bentley in the Philippines resumes physical sales and service operations of the four premium automotive brands as COVID-19 quarantine restrictions in some parts of the Philippines are eased.

PGA Cars, Inc. marks the resumption of Porsche’s, Audi’s, Lamborghini’s and Bentley’s physical operations with a strict compliance to health and sanitation protocols as it places priority on the health and safety of its clients, guests, and workforce. The restart of physical operations is complemented by the brands’ established virtual operations, some aspects of which have been recently bolstered by digital tools in response to new market conditions.

Besides continuing to observe hygienic measures practiced in Porsche, Audi, Lamborghini, and Bentley dealerships long before the quarantine—such as regular disinfection of facilities and vehicles, and providing hand sanitizers to all personnel—some of the steps to be taken during the restart are that servicing of vehicles will be done by appointment only, and that all vehicles accepted will be immediately disinfected upon arrival, as well as prior to releasing.

Also, all guests and employees entering the brands’ premises must first wear a mask, undergo a thermal check, remove their outer clothing, submit a health form, wash their hands, and go through a foot bath. Social distancing will be practiced as well, with the guidelines announced in signage around the facilities.

Clients who wish to visit the brands’ showrooms will have to book an appointment.

The re-opening of PGA Cars’ physical facilities for Porsche, Audi, Lamborghini and Bentley follows the four brands’ resumption of manufacturing operations in their home markets.

Upon the restart of PGA Cars’ brands’ physical operations, clients can check out the latest models from Porsche, Audi, Lamborghini, and Bentley. These models are properly documented and covered by the manufacturer’s warranty, as well as supported by world-class aftersales services with work performed by factory-trained and -certified technicians who have access to the latest equipment and necessary software updates.

Bentley Enters Sim Racing Championship for the First Time

Bentley Motorsport has stepped into the world of esports by announcing entry into its debut sim racing championship, the SRO E-Sport GT Series, a six-round series held by the organizers of many of the manufacturer’s real-world GT3 races.

This will see Bentley field squads in the ‘Pro’ class race for real-world racers and the ‘Silver’ class race for elite sim racers, and show support for all Continental GT3 drivers, including Bentley colleagues and fans around the world, in the ‘Am’ class events.

To celebrate the announcement, the 2020 works team livery, worn by the Bathurst 12 Hours race-winning Continental GT3, will be available for all Assetto Corsa Competizione users to download.

“Whether a real-world racer, a pro sim racer or a gamer who races for fun, if you choose to race in the Continental GT3, you are part of our esports family. To support this growing family, we have entered as a manufacturer for the SRO E-Sport GT Series, and engaged our real-world race team to assist drivers with set-up and social media promotion

“We have chosen to step into the huge sim racing arena with our trusted partners at SRO and take a very focused and targeted approach. We entered the SRO E-Sport GT Series Charity Challenge a few weeks ago and were incredibly impressed with the quality of the production and the racing. This is definitely the right place for us to be competing—it caters for our incredible loyal fans who have raced the Continental GT3 in the Assetto Corsa Competizione game for the last few years, while also enabling our real world racing fans to join us as we step into the world of esports.”

The six-round series mirrors events in the GT World Challenge Europe, the real-world series in which Bentley Motorsport has competed since 2014, taking championship and race wins along the way.

Calendar for the ‘Pro’ and ‘Silver’ races:

• Round 1 - Silverstone - 26 April
• Round 2 - Total 24 Hours of Spa - 10 May
• Round 3 - Nürburgring - 17 May
• Round 4 - Barcelona – 31 May
• Round 5 - Track to be decided by public vote – 14 June 
• Round 6 - Grand Final - TBD

While the Pro and Silver classes have restricted entry for professionals, all Assetto Corsa Competizione gamers are invited to enter the ‘Am’ class series. The final competitors will be decided by an open hot-lap qualifying that runs from 26 April to 10 May, with the fastest 40 earning their spot on the grid.

Pre-registration is open now, with further details and race formats for the inaugural SRO E-Sport Championship set to be revealed next week.

Calendar for the ‘Am’ races:

• Round 1 - Silverstone – 16 May
• Round 2 - Total 24 Hours of Spa - 23 May
• Round 3 - Nürburgring - 30 May
• Round 4 - Barcelona – 6 June
• Round 5 - Track to be decided by public vote – 13 June 
• Round 6 - Grand Final - TBD

This Timepiece Celebrates the Longest Collab Between a Watchmaker and Carmaker

Marking the longest-running partnership between a watch brand and a car manufacturer, Breitling has come up with this: the Breitling Premier Bentley Mulliner Limited Edition.

Celebrating 17 years of collaboration, this special edition watch is limited to just 1,000 pieces worldwide. The chronograph is said to echo its namesake, the Bentley Continental GT Mulliner Convertible, particularly the Breitling clock installed on the dashboard.

The 42-mm stainless steel case is presented on a blue alligator leather strap—similar to the car’s very own Imperial Blue leather, while its elegant silver dial recalls the Bentley Continental GT Mulliner Convertible’s dashboard clock. The watch boasts blue sub-dials—a 30-minute counter at 3 o’clock and a small seconds subdial at 9 o’clock—an indication of the Breitling Manufacturer Caliber 01, with an impressive power reserve of approximately 70 hours.

The dial features a white tachymeter scale on a blue inner bezel around the dial, with a red tachymeter inscription. The red second hand and centered 60-minute scale mirror the red stitching found throughout the interior cabin of the Bentley Continental GT Mulliner Convertible. The links between the watch and the Continental GT Mulliner Convertible clock are further strengthened by their complementary sets of Arabic numerals: the dashboard clock features the numerals at 12, 3, 6 and 9, while the watch has them at 1, 2, 4, 5, 7, 8, 10 and 11. Sharing these numerals across these two pieces is a nod to the design DNA they share.

On the left side of the case is a plate with an engraved “Bentley” inscription, whose design is based on the engine spin dashboard found in historic Bentleys. Around the watch’s transparent sapphire caseback is an inscription saying “MULLINER EDITION – BREITLING – ONE OF 1000”. The Breitling Premier Bentley Mulliner Limited Edition is a COSC-certified chronometer.

Two versions of this limited-edition watch is available, the difference merely limited to strap lock—one is a folding clasp, while the other is a tang-type buckle. As for the price, it starts at USD 8,000 (~ P 423,770).

The Bentley EXP 100 GT is the Future of Luxury Grand Touring

In time for their centenary celebration, Bentley shows off the future of luxury grand touring with the Bentley EXP 100 GT concept. Though purely a concept car at this point, the EXP 100 GT shows luxury that’s sustainable, autonomous, and electric.

The most obvious difference to how Bentley is looking at its future is that automobiles will never be reduced to mere mobility tools. With that, the EXP 100 GT aims to enhance the owner’s grand touring experience while still having full autonomous driving capabilities.

Looking at the world of 2035, the Bentley EXP 100 GT features the finest materials that, together with the handcrafted cabin, aims to uplift the passengers’ physical and emotional well-being. It uses an innovative glass roof embedded with prisms to harvest light and transfer it into the cabin via fiber optics. Then, it has adaptable biometric seating that senses passenger position, body temperature, and environmental conditions to deliver the ultimate in comfort. Onboard biometrics also tracks eye and head movements, and even blood pressure of its occupants to ensure the highest form of well-being.

The centerpiece though is the Bentley Personal Assistant AI. Using a Cumbria Crystal, it interprets hand gestures for various commands. The entire cabin can also be personalized into one of five modes: Enhance, Cocoon, Capture, Re-Live, and Customise. For instance, Capture brings the external environment into the cabin, creating an open-top experience without taking the roof down.

Moreover, the car features environmentally-conscious and ethical materials such as Copper Infused Riverwood (made from naturally fallen trees) and even a leather-like seating material that’s derived from the by-products of wine-making.

Under the EXP 100 GT is Bentley’s landmark battery electric powertrain that goes from 0-100 km/h in less than 2.5 seconds. It has a top speed of 300 km/h, and a maximum torque of 1,500 Nm. What’s more, the range is an exemplary 700 kilometers, while 80 percent charge is doable in just 15 minutes.

With passenger well-being its focus, the EXP 100 GT not only offers adaptive suspension, but even includes active aero for its wheels and intelligent tires that adaptive their contact patches based on weather condition and driver demand.

While the Bentley EXP 100 GT is purely a concept for now, it does set the benchmark of what the brand wants to achieve moving forward. Cut from Bentley’s 100-year DNA, it reasserts the car as a place for creating, experiencing, and capturing extraordinary human experiences and emotions while doing it in a truly sustainable way.

Bentley Produces New Book That Can Be More Expensive Than the Real Thing

Most people who dream of owning a Bentley typically settle for a collectible such as a shirt, watch, or perhaps a coffee table book. For the brand’s 100th year anniversary, Bentley, in true fashion, just couldn’t pick any ordinary publisher; they commissioned specialist luxury book publisher Opus to produce this limited edition 800-page book.

At almost a meter wide when opened and weighing approximately 30 kilos, the Bentley Centenary Opus is much more than a coffee table book. Indeed, it holds the record for being the biggest book ever produced on the story of an automotive brand.

Available in three distinct versions: the Mulliner, the Centenary, and the 100 Carat limited editions—they’re confined to just a print run of 100 copies, 500 copies, and 7 respectively.

Created, printed, and hand-bound by master binders in England, the book utilizes leather hides from the same sources as those used in Bentley models, while the Bentley Wings badge that adorns the front cover is an official hand-crafted badge, the same as those used on every Centenary model. Owners will be able to choose their own Bentley hide color for the front cover of their edition as well.

Between the covers the content features never-seen-before imagery, rare historical content and photography exclusive to the Bentley Opus, with special gatefold pages measuring two meters across.

Highlights of the Mulliner edition include iconic giant 20-in x 24-in Polaroid Portraits to showcase 10 landmark Bentleys, the first time the world’s largest polaroid camera has been used to photograph automobiles, and a collection of 56 Bentley model watercolors commissioned exclusively for the Bentley Opus project and individually painted on silk paper.

A piece of Bentley racing history completes the edition with a section of competition Michelin rubber crafted from the ‘front left’ raced-used tire taken from the 24-hour Le Mans-winning Speed 8 of 2003. This historic element will be inlaid into the inside cover of the Mulliner clamshell presentation case.

One very special feature is the ‘tailor-made’ bespoke option. Owners can have their own photographs included on special bespoke pages within their Bentley Opus edition. Being part of the Centenary story, unique in publishing, means that owners can ensure their own cars and treasured memories are included in the story. The Mulliner edition owners can also request their own cherished Bentley cars to be photographed by Opus for inclusion on their own editions. Another unique personalization option offers owners the choice of having their names gilded in gold or silver onto the cover of their edition if they wish.

The third version of the book, the exquisite 100 Carat edition, offers the ultimate in embellishment and decoration, adorned with 100 carats of diamonds and limited to an exclusive issue of seven—one for each continent. The iconic Wings badge is set in a choice of white gold or platinum to enhance the stunning diamond border.

If you had to ask the price, the Mulliner Edition is at £12,500 per copy (~ P 837,500), the Centenary Edition £3,000 per copy (~ P 201,000), and the 100 Carat Edition £200,000 per copy (~ P 13,401,000).