2017 Bentley Continental Supersports: Slower Than A Chiron But The Best Conti Yet

Eighty-nine years ago, Woolf Barnato and Bernard Rubin drove the famous Blower Bentley “Old Mother Gun” to victory at Le Mans. Today, you can buy a Bentley with nearly three times the horsepower and drive it to dinner. The 2017 Bentley Continental Supersports—the fastest, quickest, and most powerful production Bentley ever, which also happens to be the world’s fastest four-seater—is the pinnacle of the marque’s performance engineering, just as the Blower Bentley was.

With its 209-mph top speed, 3.4-second 0-to-60-mph run, and output of 700 hp and 750 lb-ft from a 6.0-liter twin-turbo charged W-12, this is a benchmark in super-luxury grand touring. The sheer force driving all four wheels through a ZF-sourced, eight speed automatic gearbox is stunning, with peak torque delivered effortlessly (and with barely perceptible lag) from 2,050 to 4,500 rpm. To top it off, when deliveries begin in the third quarter of 2017, only 710 Supersports will be seen worldwide, with just 250 earmarked for America.

A convertible version will be available for the 2018 model year, allegedly the world’s fastest four-seat open-top car, with a maximum speed of 205 mph; 60 mph arrives in 3.7 seconds. Its suspension will also be somewhat different than the coupe’s, with a slight change to rear geometry to make room for the stowed soft top.