As we wait for the 2018 Bentley Continental GT to premiere with fresh styling and an all-new platform, the existing breed spawned the most extreme Bentley in history. Supersports is its name, and as it happens, the hardcore SS is not cheap at all.
Doug DeMuro took the Continental GT Supersports for a spin, and unsurprisingly, he can’t get his head around how well the gentle giant combines world-class performance with unapologetic luxury. Starting with the latter, anyone expects from a $310,000 grand tourer to bristle with only the best of materials and finishes, including in areas that are hidden to the eye.
And it does, boy it does! Remember that the Supersports stands at the top of the Continental GT hierarchy, and even though it’s oriented toward performance instead of out-and-out luxury, it’s still one of the most soothing cars to be in. Moving on to the more exciting aspects of the Supersports, the world’s fastest four-seat production car is beyond… uhm, fast.
Sure it weighs more than one would expect from a performance-oriented vehicle (2,280 kilograms in European specification), but the way this thing gets off the line and the way it gathers speed is simply astounding. 3.4 seconds to 60 mph thanks to 750 pound-feet (1,017 Nm), 209 mph (336 km/h) maximum velocity from 700 ponies (710 PS), the whole nine yards.
As DeMuro puts it right off the bat, the Supsersports is Bentley’s idea of a Hellcat. Make no mistake about it, this particular luxobarge is no exercise in modesty, but the epitome of Bentley’s sporting ambitions. And you know what this means, don’t you? The 2018 Bentley Conti GT will be even better.
Historically speaking, the Supersports is launched a few years after the regular models arrive in showrooms. Therefore, we’ll have to wait a lil’ until the Flying B’s most popular model surpasses the 700-hp mark set by the current Supersports. The wait will be worth it, though, you can bet on that.
In the meantime, press play and let DeMuro talk you through all the features and quirks that make the Supersports such an impressive automobile.
After a 1:43 scale model of a Ferrari 250 GTO sparked Mircea's interest for cars when he was a kid, an early internship at Top Gear sealed his career path. He's most interested in muscle cars and American trucks, but he takes a passing interest in quirky kei cars as well. Full profile
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