This October, Bentley will roll out the fastest open-air car it has ever produced, the 2011 Continental Supersports convertible. The soft-top version builds on the Continental Supersports coupe formula, stuffing the same massive 621-hp twin-turbocharged W12 engine underhood to propel the 5,279-pound car to 60 mph in just 3.9 seconds.
That's a tick off the coupe, which manages the same in a spectacular 3.7 seconds, but when basking in a glorious open-air experience, what's a couple of tenths? Bentley also says the convertible will reach a top speed of 202 mph, 2 mph shy of the coupe's top end.
As with the Supersports coupe, the convertible's extra output required additional air flow to the intercoolers and radiators, resulting in larger air intakes carved into its face. A pair of vents notched into the hood allows that air to pass through the cooling system and out again, while adding to the car's aggressive, sporty look.
That aggressive styling theme continues out back with the car's wider stance, the rear track stretched an additional two inches and wrapped in giant flared fenders, and a ride height lowered 0.4 inch.
Typical brightwork touches, such as the grille and hood vents, are finished instead a smoke-black, matching the headlight and taillight bezels and adding to the car's serious attitude.
The all-wheel-drive four-seater uses the same folding soft top as the GTC, but through a combination of weight-saving measures knocks off almost 200 pounds compared with the Bentley's "lesser" Continental convertible. The seats--molded carbon-fiber shells dressed in leather and Alcantara--shave 90 pounds off the curb weight, while the high-performance carbon-ceramic vented and cross-drilled brakes and 20-inch forged alloy wheels save another 66 pounds combined. A greater use of aluminum in the chassis and additional carbon-fiber interior trim contribute another 42 pounds in sa
How's it drive?
Spectacularly.
OK, perhaps a bit more elucidation is necessary. The Continental Supersports convertible is fast, screaming fast, but with a rear-biased, all-wheel-drive system that sends 60 percent of the engine torque to the rears, it's easy to put the power down wherever you need it. It just grips like mad, its 275/35-ZR-20 Pirelli Ultra High Performance tires hanging on like crazy even when blasting around tight mountain passes. Combined with the car's advanced electronic-stability program and all four wheels under power, it's possible to let the rear end dance a bit, but it never felt close to getting away from the driver, even when pushed at close to full song on a rapid succession of switchbacks.
Bentley also makes accessing the ZF six-speed transmission and working it yourself a cinch with a pair of steering-wheel-mounted paddles. While we found their positioning a little awkward--they're placed a bit too far and high from our fingers for a perfect reach--snapping off a succession of downshifts feels as quick as we've experienced with any automatic.
The Supersports convertible is also flex-fuel capable, and on our recent drive, Bentley's handlers topped off our tanks with E85 at roughly the halfway point of a four-hour loop. Unaware of their sleight of hand, we sensed no change whatever in output. In fact, the little exercise was a demonstration of the effectiveness of the car's on-board fuel-quality sensor, which constantly monitors the car's fuel mixture to maintain full power delivery whether running on full gasoline or less.
Our major quibble with driving the Bentley is with the seats themselves. While beautifully styled with contrast stitching, and nicely bolstered to keep the driver planted even while aggressively maneuvering the car, the seat bottoms and backs feel especially hard and flat. A couple hours behind the wheel found our backsides completely fatigued, almost numb.
Do I want one?
The Continental Supersports convertible represents a serious entry in its segment, and we wouldn't be surprised to see it cross-shopped with offerings from the likes of Ferrari and Maserati. Its super exclusivity might even make it more attractive to such buyers. Bentley says the United States will get maybe "a couple of cars per dealer" when it begins showing up this October. With just 40 dealers in its U.S. network, it's easy to assume we will see fewer than 100 copies make it stateside.
Stickers start at $282,995, including destination. Tacking on another $3,700 in gas-guzzler taxes brings the price of admission to $286,695, or roughly $14,000 more than the Supersports coupe, which comes standard without a back seat. Rear passengers in the convertible will find, if not plenty, then enough room to sit fairly comfortably even with the front seats positioned for average to tall drivers.
Are four full seats--and all that sunshine--rationale enough to opt for the Supersports convertible? Or better, is the extra oomph enough to justify shelling out nearly $80,000 more than for a Continental GTC? We're not necessarily convinced, but for the serious Bentley fan, what price exclusivity?
That's a tick off the coupe, which manages the same in a spectacular 3.7 seconds, but when basking in a glorious open-air experience, what's a couple of tenths? Bentley also says the convertible will reach a top speed of 202 mph, 2 mph shy of the coupe's top end.
As with the Supersports coupe, the convertible's extra output required additional air flow to the intercoolers and radiators, resulting in larger air intakes carved into its face. A pair of vents notched into the hood allows that air to pass through the cooling system and out again, while adding to the car's aggressive, sporty look.
That aggressive styling theme continues out back with the car's wider stance, the rear track stretched an additional two inches and wrapped in giant flared fenders, and a ride height lowered 0.4 inch.
Typical brightwork touches, such as the grille and hood vents, are finished instead a smoke-black, matching the headlight and taillight bezels and adding to the car's serious attitude.
The all-wheel-drive four-seater uses the same folding soft top as the GTC, but through a combination of weight-saving measures knocks off almost 200 pounds compared with the Bentley's "lesser" Continental convertible. The seats--molded carbon-fiber shells dressed in leather and Alcantara--shave 90 pounds off the curb weight, while the high-performance carbon-ceramic vented and cross-drilled brakes and 20-inch forged alloy wheels save another 66 pounds combined. A greater use of aluminum in the chassis and additional carbon-fiber interior trim contribute another 42 pounds in sa
How's it drive?
Spectacularly.
OK, perhaps a bit more elucidation is necessary. The Continental Supersports convertible is fast, screaming fast, but with a rear-biased, all-wheel-drive system that sends 60 percent of the engine torque to the rears, it's easy to put the power down wherever you need it. It just grips like mad, its 275/35-ZR-20 Pirelli Ultra High Performance tires hanging on like crazy even when blasting around tight mountain passes. Combined with the car's advanced electronic-stability program and all four wheels under power, it's possible to let the rear end dance a bit, but it never felt close to getting away from the driver, even when pushed at close to full song on a rapid succession of switchbacks.
Bentley also makes accessing the ZF six-speed transmission and working it yourself a cinch with a pair of steering-wheel-mounted paddles. While we found their positioning a little awkward--they're placed a bit too far and high from our fingers for a perfect reach--snapping off a succession of downshifts feels as quick as we've experienced with any automatic.
The Supersports convertible is also flex-fuel capable, and on our recent drive, Bentley's handlers topped off our tanks with E85 at roughly the halfway point of a four-hour loop. Unaware of their sleight of hand, we sensed no change whatever in output. In fact, the little exercise was a demonstration of the effectiveness of the car's on-board fuel-quality sensor, which constantly monitors the car's fuel mixture to maintain full power delivery whether running on full gasoline or less.
Our major quibble with driving the Bentley is with the seats themselves. While beautifully styled with contrast stitching, and nicely bolstered to keep the driver planted even while aggressively maneuvering the car, the seat bottoms and backs feel especially hard and flat. A couple hours behind the wheel found our backsides completely fatigued, almost numb.
Do I want one?
The Continental Supersports convertible represents a serious entry in its segment, and we wouldn't be surprised to see it cross-shopped with offerings from the likes of Ferrari and Maserati. Its super exclusivity might even make it more attractive to such buyers. Bentley says the United States will get maybe "a couple of cars per dealer" when it begins showing up this October. With just 40 dealers in its U.S. network, it's easy to assume we will see fewer than 100 copies make it stateside.
Stickers start at $282,995, including destination. Tacking on another $3,700 in gas-guzzler taxes brings the price of admission to $286,695, or roughly $14,000 more than the Supersports coupe, which comes standard without a back seat. Rear passengers in the convertible will find, if not plenty, then enough room to sit fairly comfortably even with the front seats positioned for average to tall drivers.
Are four full seats--and all that sunshine--rationale enough to opt for the Supersports convertible? Or better, is the extra oomph enough to justify shelling out nearly $80,000 more than for a Continental GTC? We're not necessarily convinced, but for the serious Bentley fan, what price exclusivity?
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