This car reaches 60 miles per hour more quickly than you can say its name. Yes, the Bentley Continental Supersports has a long name, but 3.7 seconds is, well, very, very fast. There is practically no purpose for this racer-at-heart on a day-to-day basis in a civilized world, although it ought to come in handy in a James Bond-style pursuit, and these don't occur every day. It's a feel good car for the very rich and famous. You are sure to be noticed in your hood as the gentle purr at idle becomes some serious roaring with increasing revolutions of the twin-turbocharged, specially tweaked, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12-cylinder motor. Our tester came in fiery St. James red, which turned quite a few heads, but playing with the configurator on Bentley's website, we concluded that aquamarine would suit us and that we definitely wanted to stay away from Paris Hilton's pink selection pictured below.
The year was 1919 when Walter Owen Bentley introduced the Supersports with a green badge to differentiate it from the other 3-liter engine that had a red badge. This was then; now all Bentleys come with a black badge, but none are quite as fast as this stallion—not even the Continental GT Speed. That's because this very special limited production has shed a lot of weight (200 pounds). You have to move the carbon fiber seats yourself as they did away with the electric motor; and speaking of seats, the rear ones are gone altogether. There is a purpose-installed suspension giving you a glide effect on the one hand but superior handling on the other with all four wheels working. Just like its originally French cousin the Bugatti, Italian cousin the Lamborghini and its always-German cousin the Porsche, this British legend lives under the Volkswagen roof and that's a very good thing: just drive the car. Although still assembled in Crewe, England, critical components come from across the Channel. The nose has an aggressive stance, announcing something special, whereas the lines on the side and the back are similar to the GT. Unlike other supercars or exotics, you get a full trunk and that's great if you are in a hurry for a weekend escape. No need to FedEx your luggage ahead of schedule as you had to do with your F430 or C8 Spyder. Then again, you can drive it daily and keep decibels and fuel consumption lower.
To date, this is the fastest Bentley ever made...and all of us would agree, there is no price for that. And guess what—it comes with Biofuel capability and you can run ethanol with no power degradation. So if you hate the new top vodka you just purchased, just pour it into the tank and your neighbors will love you for a clean-burning and nice-smelling set of wheels. Better yet, take them for a ride and when you are done with them, come by and get us, as we would not mind another go at it.
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a review of the 2007 Bentley Continental GTC
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