Can I get vim to install bundles and close in the background?

I found this problem more easily solved by having my plugins listed in a separate file, vundle.vim. This avoids plugins and .vimrc settings which don't play nicely in Ex mode.

set nocompatible              " be iMproved, required
filetype off                  " required

" set the runtime path to include Vundle and initialize
set rtp+=~/.vim/bundle/vundle/
call vundle#rc()

" Add plugins
Plugin 'bling/vim-airline'
" ...

Then you can run the install in ex mode as below.

vim -E -u NONE -S ~/.vim/vundle.vim +PluginInstall +qall > /dev/null