Design round-up: AC Cobra GT coupe; the lightest Lotus Emira; Bentley expands Mulliner personalisation

AC Cars unveils AC Cobra GT coupe 

Britain’s oldest active vehicle manufacturer, AC Cars, has revealed the new AC Cobra GT coupe in production form. 

The coupe continues AC Cobra’s design aesthetic with the iconic shoulder line, fixed roofline and curvilinear rear. The fixed head design includes a subtle ‘double bubble’ roofline, made from carbon fibre, which accentuates the drama of the rear three-quarter view. 

The GT coupe is notably larger than the original AC Cobra, with a wheelbase of 2570mm, length of 4225mm and width of 1980mm.

Full release here. 

Lotus Emira 420 Sport 

Revealed as the ‘most powerful, lightest and most aerodynamically capable Emira ever built’, the Emira 420 Sport sits at the top of the Emira line-up. 

The Sport edition is 25kg lighter than the Emira Turbo, with a new front splitter, revised front vents, extended side sills, larger air intakes, a lip spoiler and a louvred tailgate. These revisions subtly reference Lotus’ design heritage from the likes of the Esprit Turbo. 

Inside, 12-way adjustable seats and new carbon fibre gearshift paddles emphasise this vehicle’s focus on performance.

And, for the first time, a removable tinted glass roof panel is available on the Emira – inspired, again, by the Esprit. 

Full release here. 

Mulliner personal commissioning guide grows for 2026 

Due to an increasing interest in vehicle personalisation, Bentley’s Mulliner division has added a range of additional finishes and options for customers to choose from. 

Choices of Ombré by Mulliner have doubled in size – a paint process that takes two technicians 56 hours to create a seamless transition between two complementary colours. New finishes include Alpine Green into Verdant and Grey Violet into Damson.

A new stripe has also been introduced for Bentley’s performance models such as the Continental GT S and GTC S. The stripe consists of two colours – one broad central stripe encompassed by two contrasting thinner stripes.

Inside, matching Ombré piano veneers are also now available, as well as a metal technical finish for the centre console of the GT and GTC. 

Full release here. 

People news 

Ian Haughton has retired from Bentley Motors as head of lighting. Haughton named Max Sykes as his successor. 

Jesse Diephuis has joined Stellantis Design Studio North America as automotive design brand manager, a role he describes as sitting “at the intersection of design leadership, brand strategy, and the kind of upstream thinking I have been building toward. I will be working within one of the most diverse and culturally rich automotive portfolios in the world, with the scope to bring creative discernment where it matters most.” 

A design adjacent move, but Pär Heyden has joined Volvo Cars as head of brand. Heyden was previously head of brand & executive creative director at Polestar for just over nine years.