Bonham stand at NAIAS 2018
11:00 am, Detroit, MI, USA
Arthur McKenzie, Bonham’s CEO enters the room and starts presenting the new Fleming Drophead.
We are very glad for the warm reception our preliminary images have been received with, despite us not sharing any performance data at all.
https://i.imgur.com/WDwuXGE.jpg
Without further ado, to the important bits. The Fleming Drophead will be offered in two engine configurations, the turbocharged 3.0 straight-six and the naturally aspirated 6.0 V12.
https://i.imgur.com/dCV9YUJ.jpg
Convertibles usually come with penalties that spoil the driving and road comfort, related to the loss of rigidity and added strengthening required. Since the Fleming has been designed from the outset to be a convertible, the chassis didn’t need extensive alterations. That way, weight not only didn’t increase, as it actually went down by 8 kg on the straight-six model. The V12 is, by contrast, 8 kg heavier, due to improvements in the interior quality and sound insulation. Coupled with the advanced all-aluminium construction, there should be no difference between driving either the Fixed or Drophead models.
Fleming Drophead pre-orders can be made from now, and first deliveries will take place in Spring. Prices for the Drophead start at $93,870 for the straight-six and $115,920 for the V12.
After the obligatory press photos were taken, the press noticed the elephant in the room. One car was still under covers.
In true American form, Arthur came back to stage and announced.
We have one more thing to show to you this morning.
The 2019 Fleming Brooklands
Time for the Fleming to get the Brooklands treatment. As with all Brooklands models, the car has been transformed and everything has been turned to 11.
First and foremost, the V12 engine has been turbocharged. With that, power has been lifted from 644 hp to 907 hp, with 996 Nm of torque. Peak power comes at 8,200 rpm and the redline is set at 9,000 rpm.
To put all this power to the road, RWD wasn’t enough. Therefore an AWD system had to be installed. Default settings send 35% of the power to the front axle and 65% to the rear axle, however in extreme situations up to 90% of the power can be send to the rear or up to 50% to the front. The power shuffling is controlled by an E-Diff, fitted to the rear axle of the car, along with the 7-speed DCT gearbox.
Inside, luxury wasn’t forgotten, with the car now sporting a premium sport interior, all covered in Alcantara and a 10-speaker sound system by Bang and Olufsen.
The luxurious experience inside, coupled with the added weight of the drivetrain, meant that despite the all aluminium construction, the Fleming Brooklands weighs more than 2 tons, at 2,008 kg.
In spite of that, the performance numbers are staggering. 0-62 mph comes in just 2.5s and top speed is 225 mph.
Fleming Brooklands can be pre-ordered from now, deliveries starting in June. Prices start at $156,600.
More information and images for both the Fleming Drophead and Fleming Brooklands will soon be available on the Bonham page.