One of the world’s most luxurious car companies announced Monday it will open a dealership in Jacksonville soon.
Bentley officials were on hand as well as Brickell Motors’ officials, who will operate Jacksonville’s dealership, during an afternoon news conference at the Prime Osborn Convention Center.
Jacksonville has some high-end automotive dealerships like Maserati, Porsche, Mercedes-Benz and Lexus.
The new Bentley dealership will be the area’s first foray into the ultra-luxury market since the 1990s. That is when Italian supercar maker Lamborghini briefly operated a dealership on Atlantic Boulevard as it opened a now-gone U.S. headquarters and parts, marketing and distribution center in Jacksonville’s Southpoint business park.
Brickell owns nine dealerships, mostly in South Florida. The company hopes to have its Jacksonville dealership open in the first quarter of 2019 at the intersection of Butler Boulevard and Interstate 95.
Bentley is one of the world’s oldest surviving car companies, founded in 1919 by W. O. Bentley. It was also one of the most sporting, its cars winning the prestigious 24 Hours of Le Mans in 1924, 1927, 1928, 1929, 1930 and 2003. It’s motto was and still is, “To build a good car, a fast car, the best in its class.”
Taken over by the Volkswagen Group in 1998, Bentley has handcrafted its cars in Crewe, England, for more than 75 years. It sells sporting ultra-luxury vehicles like the new 600-hp Bentayga sport utility vehicle, which starts at just under $200,000 and is called the world’s “fastest, most powerful, most luxurious and most exclusive SUV.”
The company’s three other lines include the 626-hp Continental GT, 626-hp Flying Spur with 6-liter W-12 engine and imposing Mulsanne sedan, which starts at about $300,000 and includes the 19.2-foot-long extended wheelbase luxury limousine.
Company officials said it takes 130-plus hours to build a Flying Spur and Bentayga, and around 400 for a Mulsanne. It currently races the second-generation Continental GT3 in multiple U.S. and European racing series.
Bentley operates more than 200 dealerships in 58 markets, 45 in the U.S., delivering more than 10,000 cars a year. Six Bentley dealerships are in Florida.