Bentley Continental Supersports
Disclaimer: In no way could this car be described as a chauffeur car, but as it is a Bentley and loosely related to the four door Bentley Continental Flying Spur, I thought it was worth mentioning!
Some cars are bred to be driven and some are born to be driven by. The new Bentley Continental Supersports is of the former camp. In essence it is a stripped down, Continental GT: leaner, meaner and faster.
Weight is the enemy of speed. The Bentley engineers have decided that the customers of this particular model, would prefer to strip out the electronic, massaging rear seats, and replace them with a carbon fibre bar. . . Having been driven at high speed in a Continental GT before, I can see where they are coming from. To really appreciate a GT you really need to be in one of the front seats, preferably the drivers.
Bentley Continental Supersports interior: Who needs rear seats anyway?
With 621 bhp available from the 6 litre W12 engine and a faster shifting gearbox coupled with a 110 kg less weight than a Continental GT Speed, make the Supersports a very quick car. Reaching 60 mph in 3.7 seconds and topping out at 204 mph the Supersports lives up to its moniker. The Supersports was named after the super-lightweight (for a Bentley) Bentley Supersports of the 1920s. Fitted with ceramic disc brakes and having all-wheel drive this should prove to be a very safe motor car too.
Distinctive smoked steel finish to all the brightware, including the wheels which shroud the ceramic disc brakes.
Aston Martin, Rolls-Royce and Bentley all chose the 2009 Geneva Motorshow to announce some exciting new cars. Aston Martin announced the One-77, a bold limited edition supercar. The Rolls-Royce 200EX is a more dynamic Rolls-Royce, but still a Rolls-Royce never the less. Some say it could even be a competitor to the Bentley Continental Flying Spur. Somehow though I don’t think even Rolls-Royce would create a competitor to the Continental Supersports. A muscular 2 seater fits Bentley’s sporting heritage precisely and shows how just how different Bentley and Rolls-Royce really are.
Another first for the Supersports is that this Bentley is the first to be able to use flex-fuel, either petrol or bi-ethanol or a combination of the two. Sure, there are faster supercars out there. But with the latest generation of Bentleys, these are cars you can use everyday. Very reliable and even in Supersports guise are likely to be dignified and calm at all times. Even with your right foot pushing the pedal firmly into the diamond stitched upholstery. Just like Benteys of old…
The rear view of the Bentley Continental Supersports