Bentley Brooklands

Back in March last year, at the Geneva Motor Show, Bentley announced a new model based on the ancient Arnage - the Brooklands. What a sensible move! Ancient though the Arnage is (and it’s engine - which is even older) it epitomises traditional Bentleys, something VW is very keen to keep alive. So a limited edition coupe, based on the Arnage, was a great way to show commitment to the model ( since then VW have reinforced that commitment to the engine and the model - VW is obviously a safe pair of hands for Bentley).

Now that the Bentley Brooklands is for sale, at around £225,000, it seems a good idea to have a quick look at what’s on offer, even though the first years production is sold out (but if you want one now, it’s not a problem!). If you’ve been here before you’ll know that I have a big soft spot for these old-school Bentleys. And this one is a peach.

Based on the Arnage, the Brooklands is in many ways a successor to the old Continental R (a name Bentley couldn’t of course use for this car as it would be confused with the ‘VW’ Bentleys). A glorious, powerful and luxurious coupe, harking back to the Bentley glory days of the 1920s. There is nothing else like it on the market anymore. I suppose the biggest competition comes from Ferrari with the Scaglietti or in-house with the Continental GT. But this is much bigger; much more a traditional car.

The V8 lump in the Brooklands has a huge 530bhp (the most ever from this engine) and a planet turning 750lb ft of torque. That’s enough to propel this huge car to 60mph in a smidge under 5 seconds, and on to 185mph. But the mid-range performance is the most impressive. With all that torque you’re looking at around 1.5 seconds for the 30-50 range. That will make it hugely impressive on the road.

Rolls Royce already has something similar up its sleeve at the moment, and don’t think Maybach won’t jump on this big, luxury coupe niche as well. It’s been pretty empty for a while, but that’s all going to change. Should be interesting.