Recalls have always been around and always will be. Sometimes for understandable reasons, sometimes it seems a bit fussy. You would think the latter in this case, but there was quite a serious reason behind it.
One of the absolute showpieces of a Bentley – if available – is the emblem on the nose. We don’t mean the ‘flat’ logo, but really the upright ornament. Ten years ago, however, the B with the wings on it turned out to cause some headaches. In the United States, it was discovered that it showed rusting on some models and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) was certainly not pleased about this. Exactly ten years ago today, it was announced that it was initiating a recall campaign.
According to the NHTSA, the decals could be dangerous to pedestrians because of the rust. This is as follows: in the event of a collision, the ornament folds away in the grille in a flash. This must of course ensure that the person who is hit does not get the statue pinned. However, the rust formation could prevent it from folding back smoothly and thus still cause injuries. Bentley immediately addressed the problem with new parts for the affected cars. The Arnage, Azure and Brooklands from 2007 to 2009 with an ornament had to pass the garage.