Aston Martin DB11 v Bentley Continental GT Speed

Wuth input from Mercedes-AMG, can the new DB11 help Aston Martin seriously challenge the Bentley Continental in the luxury GT market?

- Nick Trott

LET’S START WITH THE Bentley. And it starts well. This is a deeply, deeply handsome car, evolved beautifully from Dirk van Braeckel’s original of 2003. You approach it, stroke the impossibly even paint, feel the weight of the door and notice the double glazing as you open it. The cabin is magnificent, too. Luxurious, of course, and unmistakably Bentley. The infotainment system, however, is poor in presentation and operation, and has aged badly. 

You hear a wooompf as the engine starts – distant and slightly aloof. Four words, it turns out, that characterise the Bentley as a whole. As you move off, you’re instantly aware that the twin-turbo W12 is a prodigious engine. Brutal even, but with an inherent refinement that encourages you to stretch it to the limit in any gear. This is a wildly fast car; the fastest production car Bentley has ever made, in fact. From a standstill to 160kmph takes just nine seconds, while the top speed is 331kmph. And the eight-speed ZF automatic transmission, mated to a 40/60-split four-wheel drive system, makes deploying the W12’s 633bhp and 841Nm of torque a cinch. Everything is easy in the Bentley and feels intentionally so, as if the car is always saying, ‘I’ve got this.’