Review by Road and Track
Something this massive simply shouldn’t accelerate or corner this hard. And what has dealt this unceremonious slap to the face of physics? The Bentley Continental Supersports, a 4915-lb., 621-bhp all-wheel-drive rocket ship whose luxuriously pleated, stitched, carbon-trimmed and leather-swathed interior seems incongruent with acceleration in the league of a Porsche 911 Turbo. It’s the most powerful, quickest and fastest road-legal Bentley ever.
Lightweight carbon-ceramic brakes are standard, the fronts using every last millimeter of space inside the 20-in. wheels. What you won’t find is a back seat; instead, there’s a carpeted luggage area with a cross-car carbon tube that Bentley calls a “luggage retaining beam.” Sure looks like a harness bar to us, as the Sparco front seats (meticulously reupholstered in leather and Alcantara, of course) have slots for a 6-point belt’s shoulder straps.
The twin-turbo W-12 issues a snake hiss at tip-in, indicating the turbos are at attention. Power delivery is characterized by continuous, unrelenting thrust, like a 777 on takeoff roll. And curiously, one of its sounds seems to be the muted gnash of roller chains and sprockets, as the camshaft drives at the back of this complex and compact engine nest near the firewall. The torque-converter ZF 6-speed is a willing cohort, with quick, positive shifts either through internal logic, or summoned from column-mounted paddles. Handling? There’s 0.90g of peak grip, modest understeer and—dare we say?—agility that belies the weight, like a lumbering circus bear that suddenly rears back and performs a jig from Riverdance.
2010 BENTLEY CONTINENTAL SUPERSPORTS
List Price $267,000
Price as tested $294,055
Curb Weight 4915 lb
Engine, transmission 6.0-liter W-12tt, 6-sp auto
Horsepower, bhp @ rpm 621 @ 6000
Torque, lb-ft @ rpm 590 @ 1700-5600
0–60 mph 3.6 sec
0–100 mph 8.7 sec
0–1320 ft (1/4 mile) 11.9 sec @ 117.4 mph
Top speed 204 mph
Braking, 60–0 mph 118 ft
Braking, 80–0 mph 207 ft
Lateral accel (200-ft skidpad) 1.10g
Speed thru 700-ft slalom 66.3 mph
Our mileage, EPA city/highway est 13.0, 12/19 mpg
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