2010 Bentley Continental Supersports

2010 Bentley Continental Supersports

Teaser shots for Bentley's new 2010 Continental Supersports have been making their way round the internet for the past couple of weeks, but today Bentley was finally ready to unleash exhaustive details on their new E85-capable 621 horsepower Continental Supersports 2 seat supercar.

The Continental Supersports shares most body pieces and drivetrain architecture with the Continental GT Speed, though both interior and exterior have been beefed up to handle all that extra power. New are larger standard 20 inch wheels with what Bentley boasts are the largest and strongest brakes on any production car.

The Continental Supersports also gets a trick automatically deploying rear spoiler that is completely hidden in the sublime bodywork. Wider track relative to Continental GT Speed models necessitates new flared fenders, and enlargened inlets feed air through the twin-turbocharged air intake system.

E85 ethanol, while clean-burning and mostly eco-friendly, is more corrosive than conventional gasoline. Thus, Bentley has replaced most of the engine internals in its turbocharged W12 powerplant. All the rings, seals and gaskets are unique to the Continental Supersports, meaning a greater focus on extreme performance is possible with this engine.

The Continental Supersports gets a modified version of the AWD system found in lesser Continental models. In this application, the AWD system distributes 40 percent torque to the front wheels and 60 percent to the rear by default. Through the use of electronic locking differentials torque can be reapplied as the situation requires, naturally.

The 2010 Bentley Continental Supersports currently has a release date this Spring, though Bentley says US models are still waiting on regulators' approval to run on the E85 spewing out of North American pumps. The car is adequately engineered, and the British motor company expects full ethanol certification by August.