Every so often a brand takes a near-perfect formula and achieves the impossible. This time around, Bentley is in the spotlight, and from the images alone, its latest creation leaves us speechless. Meet the Bentley Supersports. The most unhinged, unapologetic performance Bentley the brand has ever unleashed. This isn’t just a Continental with a gym membership; it’s a full-blown statement of intent. Its brooding stance and aero carved in anger mean trouble. And the spec sheet only confirms it. It’s a numbers-on-paper monster built to prove that Bentley can do refined luxury and pure mechanical menace in the same package. This is the Supersports, and it’s Bentley, unfiltered.
To start the Supersport is equipped with an extensive aero package that stands out and alone produces 300 kilos of downforce. Throwing together a serious list of functional airflow, including a brand new front bumper with the biggest splitter ever fitted to a Bentley, two air channels that send air to both the engine and front brakes, and a new mesh grill with an updated design and precisely engineered out of lightweight aluminium. Two pairs of stacked dive planes sit on the corners of the front bumper that work in conjunction with the front splitter to keep the nose in submission. A new skirt that runs the full length of the car and meets a new rear fender that manages and decreases high pressure whilst ensuring clean airflow around the tail. All of which meets a fixed rear spoiler in the rear, and few can say that it doesn’t look epic. But that’s just the boring part, believe it or not. The real fun is powertrain theatrics.
The heartbeat of this monster is a twin-turbocharged V8 without hybridisation. Its 490kW and 800Nm are purely internal combustion. That’s 666PS for the Europeans, I know – mental, right? But to add to the chaos, this Continental is the lightest Bentley in 85 years at just under two tonnes, and it doesn’t end there. As the cherry on top, and for the first time in a Continental, the power is sent straight to the rear 22-inch forged aluminium wheels and tyres and provides what we can only imagine as a thrilling 0-100km/h time of 3.7 seconds. It sounds like pure, unadulterated madness. But it’s still a Bentley.
Yes, the interior now lacks rear seats, but there is no compromise within. The cabin retains a high level of class and quality. The seats are lighter, more bolstered for cornering support, and lowered. Retaining a few carbon touches around the shoulders, but by no means are they bucket seats. The seats also retain an 11-way adjustment feature, which is a characteristic of Bentley. If you turn around, you’ll see only carbon fibre. The raw carbon fibre tub works its way through the cabin in a luxury blend that only Bentley can do at this level. It looks like a Continental on the inside, only darker, with a touch of racing intent. Bentley states that every detail is designed to enhance the driving experience, and it is clear that this was carefully considered.
Surprise surprise – only 500 Supersports will be handcrafted, and each unit is marked with a numbered plaque on the centre console. Bentley also offers a high level of customisation with 24 performance-focused exterior colours, including high-gloss carbon fibre. The interior is met with the same level of luxury, with 22 primary hide colours for the leather as well as 11 secondary colours. And to top it all off, it still has soft-closing doors.
The Bentley Continental GT Supersports is one of the finest examples of modern luxury meets old-school performance, and that’s something that we cherish here at TopGear. It looks monstrous, it likely drives like a bat out of hell, and its interior is luxury performance perfection. Is this the best luxury performance car ever made? And it is all completed with the distinctive 8 in the grille, just in case it was not already impressive enough.
