Bentley Conti GT Supersports

THINK open-top Bentley and the mighty 4.5-litre Blower model of the Twenties might spring to mind. Packing enormous attitude with a vast supercharger poking out of the front, it’s one of the company’s all-time great cars.

Fast forward to 2010, and there’s a pretender to that crown – the Supersports Convertible. Claimed to be the world’s fastest-ever four-seat drop-top, it’s also the quickest open-air car in the firm’s history, thanks to its twin-turbocharged 6.0-litre W12 which it shares with its hard-top sibling.

It produces 621bhp and 800Nm of torque but crucially, in these environmentally conscious days, the Supersports runs on petrol or E85 bioethanol. It still returns a 0-60mph dash of 3.9 seconds, and is in that rarefied club of cars topping 200mph, no matter which fuel you put in the tank. While both the Coupé and Convertible are positioned as the marque’s ‘extreme’ performers, Bentley is now keen to stress the more sociable nature of its drop-top which – unlike the two-seater Coupé – has seating for four and a triple-quilted electricallyoperated hood for refinement.

There’s no denying the Supersports Convertible has the wow factor in spades.

With 20-inch Smoked Steel wheels shod in Pirelli Ultra-High Performance tyres, flared wings to accommodate the two-inch wider rear track, a bluff nose and low-slung aggressive lines, there is a real hint of menace, too.

In place of the usual plump Bentley armchairs are race-style, carbon fibre seats that look positively skeletal, but are actually supportive and comfortable and help the car lose 45kg, while the wheels are 10kg lighter. Massive carbon-ceramic brakes strip away another 20kg, reducing weight overall by 98kg compared to the GTC Speed Convertible.

On the move, the effects of this diet are obvious, making the 2,395kg Bentley more nimble and responsive than its GTC Speed counterpart. The steering is more taut and direct, even if more feedback wouldn’t hurt.

2010 Bentley Continental Flying Spur Speed

Any company that names its performance models "Speed" is just fine by us, especially when it's not just marketing hype. The Bentley Continental Flying Spur Speed is quite a mouthful, but in this case it's an entirely accurate description. With its 6.0-liter, twin-turbo W-12 engine tuned to deliver 48 more horses and 74 additional lb.-ft. than the regular Continental Flying Spur (it also gets retuned suspension and sticky Pirelli P Zero tires on 20-in. rims), the CFS Speed is a car that will hit a genuine 200 mph on the autobahn while barely breaking a sweat.

Yes, the Bentley's sheer, um, speed is astonishing. And there's nothing wrong with its acceleration, either. The 0-60 mph sprint is dispatched in just 4.2 sec., and the quarter-mile in 12.9 sec. at 106.7 mph. Pretty impressive for a sedan weighing a stout 5482 lb. Part of the reason is the herculean W-12 under that stubby hood. Nailing the gas is like opening the floodgates of the Hoover dam; you surf an irresistible surge of thrust as the CFS lunges for the far horizon. But the Bentley's all-wheel-drive system -- unique among super-luxury sedans -- also makes sure every last one of the CFS Speed's 600 horses and 553 lb.-ft. of torque gets to the pavement.
2010 Bentley Continental Flying Spur Speed Left Side
Click to view Gallery
But what's really impressive about this car is its chassis. Like their counterparts at Porsche, Bentley's chassis engineers seem determined to build a car that defies the laws of physics. The CFS Speed grips and steers and punches through turns almost like a sport sedan. True, it works its front tires very hard, and the AWD layout robs the steering of some clarity, but after an exhilaratingly fast run along a canyon road you get out of the CFS Speed shaking your head and grinning like a loon at the sheer implausibility of what you've just done. No car this big, this heavy, this luxurious should be this good in the twisties.

Setting the CFS Speed's suspension in comfort or normal modes caramel-coats the road impacts from the sports-oriented tires without diluting the precision of their responses. Sport mode makes the ride noticeably busier, and generates some noise through the steering during hard cornering, but keeps the body nicely tied down. The big Bentley tracks like a bullet train on the freeway, even in gusty crosswinds, regardless of the suspension setting.

2010 Bentley Continental Flying Spur Speed

Any company that names its performance models "Speed" is just fine by us, especially when it's not just marketing hype. The Bentley Continental Flying Spur Speed is quite a mouthful, but in this case it's an entirely accurate description. With its 6.0-liter, twin-turbo W-12 engine tuned to deliver 48 more horses and 74 additional lb.-ft. than the regular Continental Flying Spur (it also gets retuned suspension and sticky Pirelli P Zero tires on 20-in. rims), the CFS Speed is a car that will hit a genuine 200 mph on the autobahn while barely breaking a sweat.

Yes, the Bentley's sheer, um, speed is astonishing. And there's nothing wrong with its acceleration, either. The 0-60 mph sprint is dispatched in just 4.2 sec., and the quarter-mile in 12.9 sec. at 106.7 mph. Pretty impressive for a sedan weighing a stout 5482 lb. Part of the reason is the herculean W-12 under that stubby hood. Nailing the gas is like opening the floodgates of the Hoover dam; you surf an irresistible surge of thrust as the CFS lunges for the far horizon. But the Bentley's all-wheel-drive system -- unique among super-luxury sedans -- also makes sure every last one of the CFS Speed's 600 horses and 553 lb.-ft. of torque gets to the pavement.
2010 Bentley Continental Flying Spur Speed Left Side
Click to view Gallery
But what's really impressive about this car is its chassis. Like their counterparts at Porsche, Bentley's chassis engineers seem determined to build a car that defies the laws of physics. The CFS Speed grips and steers and punches through turns almost like a sport sedan. True, it works its front tires very hard, and the AWD layout robs the steering of some clarity, but after an exhilaratingly fast run along a canyon road you get out of the CFS Speed shaking your head and grinning like a loon at the sheer implausibility of what you've just done. No car this big, this heavy, this luxurious should be this good in the twisties.

Setting the CFS Speed's suspension in comfort or normal modes caramel-coats the road impacts from the sports-oriented tires without diluting the precision of their responses. Sport mode makes the ride noticeably busier, and generates some noise through the steering during hard cornering, but keeps the body nicely tied down. The big Bentley tracks like a bullet train on the freeway, even in gusty crosswinds, regardless of the suspension setting.

Bentley Mulsanne Sold Out

It seems that the Bentley Mulsanne has been a hit state-side. Bentley have apparently sold out all 200 2010 build slots as well as those for both 2011 and 2012. In fact, it is being reported that the British company have received over 800 orders for the new luxury saloon.

And before anyone asks, an increase in production is not as practical as it sounds. Each Mulsanne is hand-crafted with over 170 man hours going into the entire process. 26 hours for the engine build and 86 hours for the painting are two of the most time consuming processes.

Just to remind you of the vital statistics: the Mulsanne will feature a new 6¾ litre, twin-turbocharged V8 engine, hand-assembled and fully tested by Bentley’s technicians. 0-100km/h (62mph) will be possible in 5.3 seconds thanks to 505bhp and 752lb-ft of maximum torque.

Bentley Mulsanne Sold Out Until 2012

The global economy might just be recovering from financial turmoil, but Bentley doesn’t look to be faring too badly. In fact, right now production has begun on the Arnage’s successor (not replacement, says Bentley) that was introduced last year.

The company had said a lot of interest was gotten on the Mulsanne, and it looks like they were right. Bentley had planned for a production run of about 200 units per year, and over 800 orders were received, putting the car’s sold out date into 2012.

This is an impressive feat by any measure, especially considering the Mulsanne is more of a Phantom competitor than the Arnage. To keep up with demand, Bentley announced that they will be increasing capacity in order to keep up with the demand.

For a car like the Mulsanne that takes 400 hours (or around 16 days) to build, 200 of which are for hand-built parts, increasing production isn’t an easy task. The overall process works out to be 15% longer than building the Arnage.

Bentley with a remarkable history sells for £670,500

This 4½ Litre Tourer sold alongside 'the final genuine works MGB in existence' in Surrey, UK

The 1931 Bentley 4½ Litre Vanden Plas Open Tourer

The most anticipated sale emerged as the clear winner in Historics at Brooklands' classic cars auction, earlier this week (June 2).

A 1931 Bentley 4½ Litre Vanden Plas Open Tourer - the 16th-to-last of its kind ever built (see our previous report, June 1) - was the day's biggest sale, with a back story as impressive as its magnificent bodywork and engineering.

Built some years after the marque began in 1927, this example boasts many of the improvements added throughout the car's production.

During this time and against expectations, the 4 1/2 Litre's racing siblings superseded the 6 Litre as Bentley's "great white hope" at prestigious events like Le Mans.

This supercharged road version has a remarkable life story - including 'vanishing from the radar for a few years' and car later reappearing in London during the Blitz in 1940-41.