Monterey in a Mulsanne – a Bentley mission to Pebble Beach

After a ten-and-a-half-hour flight from London, the idea of steering headlong – and solo – into the early Los Angeles rush-hour traffic in a five-and-a-half-metre-long, left-hand drive Bentley Mulsanne (worth some £230,000 with extras) and on the other side of the road to which I am familiar, might seem a little daunting. But as soon as I sink into the super saloon’s big leather seats, Bluetooth my iPhone to stream some music via the Naim premium audio, turn up the air-conditioning and press the accelerator gently, all becomes well.

LAX Airport may be my starting point but the final destination is the Monterey Peninsula towards San Francisco, some 400 miles northward, for the world-famous annual classic car show Pebble Beach.

The near week-long series of events now showcases not only some of the planet’s best cars from decades past – and offers many of them for sale at various high-end auctions – but this year also plays host to at least half a dozen brand-new cars due to unveiled to the public for the first time – from BMW’s M4 and Cadillac’s latest concept to even a Moroccan supercar.

Microsoft

Guy Bird at the wheel of the Bentley Mulsanne on the Pacific Coast Highway

The early-evening Californian sun comes out

First to get out of LA though. With the sat-nav set to guide me to the tranquil Ojai Valley [pronounce it ‘Oh-Hi’] some 80 miles away, it should be a fairly simple two-hour drive on routes 405 and 101, but traffic is heavy and stop/start.

Luckily the Mulsanne’s eight-speed automatic gearbox makes things effortless and although the twin-turbocharged 505bhp V8 engine could catapult the car to 60mph in 5.1 seconds, the 6.75-litre unit is also remarkably happy just tootling along at low revs, without the twitchiness other high-power cars can suffer from at low speed.

Once past Ventura the mist suddenly clears along with the traffic, the early-evening Californian sun comes out and the Ojai Valley Inn – a swanky golf-biased hotel resort and our first night’s accommodation – soon comes into view.

Microsoft

After good food, a glass or two of local wine and some sleep, the journey begins again the next morning with bright skies, deep canyons and nicely winding roads to test out the Mulsanne’s handling. Using the cold-touch, and neatly knurled, metal-dipped steering wheel paddles to control the gears and the car’s momentum, it’s easy to keep good control of the admittedly large car, and we’re soon turning left onto the famous Pacific Coast Highway One that snakes up the side of California.

Running through the Big Sur region, this stretch of road is eye-poppingly beautiful, and with gentle curves and reasonably wide lanes it’s simple to navigate too, the biggest hazard being the frequent driver-distracting sea vistas and tempting viewpoint parking areas. After lunch at one of them – Ragged Point – we press on to Carmel, known for its famous former mayor Clint Eastwood, and then on to Pebble Beach.

Microsoft

The famous Bixby Creek Bridge in Big Sur, California

The Inn at Spanish Bay has a stunning array of special cars at its reception – on our arrival there is an ultra-rare £1.2m Aston Martin ONE-77 and across the way from it a bright red Ferrari FF next to a ‘Cadbury’s purple’ Rolls-Royce Phantom Drophead Coupe. To round off the evening, a quick visit to 'the Home of Bentley' – an adapted house down the road featuring bespoke Bentley furniture, which plays host to the global unveiling of the British luxury brand’s first handbag collection.

Aiming to get more well-heeled women interested in the brand – in China 32% of Bentley owners are already ladies – the Italian-made bags feature obligatory quilted innards and other neat details, are limited to only 160 worldwide and start at a cool £3,500. Oh and beyond all the product, motor racing legend Derek Bell pops by to say hello along with Bentley’s victorious 2003 Le Mans 24-hour racing driver Guy Smith. It’s a fitting end to a 350-mile road trip that proves without doubt that the Bentley Mulsanne can ‘grand tour’ with the best of them. And the main event hasn’t even begun. I can’t wait.

Stay tuned for more of MSN Cars’ special Pebble Beach reports over the coming days

Follow our Bentley Mulsanne Californian road trip with Bing Maps

On Bing: more pics of the Pacific Coast Highway
Pebble Beach 2013 preview
The Little Car Show at Monterey
Road trip: California by Chevrolet Camaro

By Guy Bird, contributor, MSN Cars