05:19AM - 11.02.'14
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News Source: autoblog.com
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Bentley still appeals to those with an appreciation for strong, Old World traditionalism. Cars wearing the storied Flying B have been discussed in wood-paneled drawing rooms by men wearing earthy tweeds and corduroy through clouds of fragrant cigar and pipe smoke, for decades. It is a company that has spent nearly 100 years building cost-no-object automobiles, for rich drivers who require a tremendous way to waft above the Sturm und Drang of mortal motoring. The Bentley Continental GT, while unmistakably a party to that legacy of wooly privilege, has always seemed better suited to the nouveau riche than the landed gentry. The Mulsanne and the Continental Flying Spur still carry forward the brand's heritage of unfathomably fast, gargantuan sedans, while the GT has been busy inveigling an entirely new class of buyer with its lottery-win good looks. A microsecond version of that analysis was all I had time for as I careened around another heroic left-hand sweeper in this Ice (white) 2014 Bentley Continental GT V8 S. For a car with roots in rainy England and German-engineering genes, the V8 S felt remarkably at home while crushing the desert-strewn distance between San Diego and Palm Springs – almost the epicenter of the New World's Golden West. This is grand touring of not just distance, then, but time and tradition as well. Of course the Conti GT has been updating the Bentley idiom since 2003, with this, the second generation of the car, already pushing three years on the market. And while the W12-powered GT Speed still lords atop the line, the V8 model that was introduced last year has become company's new volume seller. Fully 51 percent of Continental GT's sold have the V8 engine option, and that split is expected to be even more dramatic when deliveries of this V8 S version start to roll out over the next few months. When they do start to make their way into public hands, it'll take a fairly keen eye to spot the V8 S from distance (especially considering the rarity of a Bentley sighting at all). Model-specific badges are the obvious giveaway, and "Beluga" gloss black on the mirrors, side skirts and rear diffuser are the other telltales of that which lurks inside. I hardly need to mention that the Continental GT's interior compartment is lush – tastefully decorated with materials that feel substantial and refined. Metal and leather touch points are impeccable; the duo-tone leather-trimmed seats a rare amalgamation of cushiony and supportive. The V8 S trim makes itself known from other Conti GT's by way of a contrasting center stripe on the header that matches whichever of the 17 hues of hide you've selected as your main. Kick plates reading "V8 S" are another easy hint. The less said about the 'vintage Volkswagen' feel of the navigation/infotainment system the better, I suppose, but that really is the lone dim spot in an otherwise brilliantly executed coupe cabin. It seems implausible that an interior can feel 'worth' $200,000-plus, but Bentley gets away with it here. As is the case so often in the motoring world, the difference of one letter in a model designation makes a healthy difference in the Bentley catalog. Here, the "S" following the engine configuration represents output figures of 521 horsepower and 502 pound-feet of torque from the twin-turbo 4.0-liter mill; up meaningfully from the 500 hp and 487 lb-ft of the base V8 model. Connected to an aggressively sporting eight-speed automatic transmission, that also means the V8 S coupe's 0-60 time drops to 4.3 seconds (down from the V8's 4.6 seconds), while top speed climbs to 192 mph (versus 188 mph). Impressively, the added power from the S engine doesn't affect overall fuel economy, with ratings of 15 miles per gallon city and 24 highway holding steady. Not that gas mileage is a pressing concern in this rarified space. The preceding paragraph comes off as almost rather hollow after having driven the V8 S, as that bloodless list of statistics has about as much in common with the character of the engine as a Sex Ed. does with sex. Keep reading and you'll understand that the Continental GT V8 S is a flawed machine, but you should know up front that none of that has anything to do with this new motor. My driving partner (the inimitable Bengt Halvorson) was game for a few full-throttle launches, so I can write the following with confidence: the turbo'd V8 has virtually no punch under 1,500 rpm from a standing start. That lag was no bad thing however, as it gave me a fraction of a second to gulp some air before the Bentley engine sucked the remaining oxygen out of the immediate vicinity. A doubly helpful breath as the resultant explosion forward threatened to collapse my lungs in my chest. This is a quick car. |
