Bentley’s new Continental Supersports Convertible will be the fastest and most powerful open-top Bentley ever when it goes on sale in June. Revealed at today's Geneva motor show, it will cost from £178,300.
Supersports models are the most extreme interpretations of the Continental — hence the name, which was made famous by 1925’s Bentley Supersports, the fastest and most powerful car of its day.
See the official Bentley Continental Supersports Convertible pics
The Supersports Convertible’s twin-turbocharged W12 engine produces 621bhp and 590lb ft of torque. It takes 3.9sec to get from 0-60mph and 9.6sec to reach 100mph from a standstill, and can reach 202mph.
Power is sent to all four wheels through a six-speed ZF Quickshift automatic gearbox, which cuts shift times to just 93 milliseconds and allows double downshifts.
As in last year’s Supersports coupé, Bentley has reduced the weight of the four-seat Supersports Convertible over the standard car. Almost 100kg has been shaved off the base car’s 2485kg kerb weight, through the use of lightweight 20-inch alloys, carbon-ceramic brakes, lightweight seats and carbonfibre in its cabin.
The Supersports Convertible is the latest Bentley to receive the firm’s FlexFuel technology, which allows it to run on petrol, E85 biofuel or any mix of the two. Bentley says FlexFuel cuts ‘well to wheel’ emissions by 70 per cent and the technology will be standard across the Continental range from the 2011 model year.
Bentley has revised spring, damper and steering settings, and the four-wheel drive system has a 40/60 rear-biased torque split to cut understeer. The rear wheel arches have been flared to accommodate a 50mm increase in rear track, and the ESP has been tweaked to intervene less at low speeds.
Mark Tisshaw
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Re: Bentley Supersports Convertible revealed
Re: Bentley Supersports Convertible revealed
What with this and the Kahn Range Rover thing, We're fast approaching the time when Autocar needs a "Footballers & Their WAGS Only" section of the site.
Re: Bentley Supersports Convertible revealed
I suppose if winning the lottery is your only aspiration... What a chav-tastic heap of nonsense. 100kgs off a grand total of 2.5tonnes?! Wow, that’s amazing.
Sadly, Bentley is becoming more and more irrelevant with each launch. It doesn't have to be like this; the original Continental Type R was a very clever, truly ground-breaking vehicle packed full of ingenious design. Come on VW, you have the know-how to produce word-beating cars both in terms of performance and economy- get some of that down to Crewe quick-time! Instead of a 2tonne+, 600bhp irrelevance, let’s see (for example) a 400bhp, -1500kg aero-coupe, with superb quality and basic only-the-necessary features and trim.
Don’t let one of the great car brands die of a combination of morbid obesity and lack of imaginationWolfsburg