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By
EWANKENNEDY
6 August 2007
Reviving a traditional name, Bentley has added a new model
called the GT Speed to its Continental range.
And speed is what this car is all about, though
the prestigious British marque didn’t admit it publicly it was
obviously disappointed that the standard Continental GT had a top
speed just a smidgen under 200 mph. These things count when it
comes to bragging rights at the stratospheric end of the car
business.
So the Brits went back to their drawing boards and
found some extra power for their big W12 engine. Capacity remains
at the same 6.0 litres as before, but the twin-turbo unit now has
an additional nine per cent more power, to take it up to a neat
600 horsepower, or 449 kilowatts in Aussie speak.
The engineers have also produced another 100
Newton metres of torque, the peak now being 750 Nm. This is
achieved at a ridiculously low 1750 rpm, so most drivers will have
the engine in the best area of the torque band virtually all the
time.
Bentley Continental GT Speed will leap off the
line, to reach 100 km/h in only 4.5 seconds on its way to a top
speed of – wait for it – 202 mph. The magic 200 mentally
barrier has been broached. That’s 326 km/h in case you have the
good fortune to be able to drive the big Bentley Speed in an area
where these sort of numbers are appropriate.
In the real world the ability of the car to
accelerate from 80 to 120 km/h in a mind-blowing three seconds
will make for exceptionally safe overtaking.
The body of the GT Speed features a darker chromed
finish to the mesh radiator grilles, lowered suspension on a new
design of 20-inch wheels carrying Pirelli P-Zeros tyres and twin
oval exhaust tailpipes.
Inside, the Continental GT Speed is most certainly
a Bentley, with all that means in the way of a good combination of
tradition, modern styling and comfort. The Speed features a ‘Mulliner
Driving Specification’ package. This uses quilted hide facings
on the seats and trim and gives buyers a choice of several
different timber veneers. Drilled alloy pedals give it a real
sports appearance.
The overall effect is of luxury, perhaps what we
could call high-speed luxury, that is sure to please the occupants
of this big, hard-edged sporting coupe from one of the world’s
best known sporting-car marques.
There are those that argue that conspicuous
consumption should be frowned upon in these times of global
warning. They are probably right, but cars like Bentley Speed do
add an air of interest to what would be an otherwise mundane
motoring landscape. And are only sold in tiny numbers. In any
case, the fuel consumption and exhaust emissions of
high-performance engines are often surprisingly low, particularly
at motorway cruising speeds.
Bentley Continental GT Speed has only just been
announced, release dates and pricing in Australia are still being
finalised. We would anticipate that you would have a fair bit of
change from half a million dollars, but will need to wait and see.
© Copyright
Marque Publishing Company
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