Bentley Continental Flying Spur Speed

As anyone who has read here before knows, I am a big Bentley fan. Even more so since Volkswagen acquired Bentley, as the marque has found its identity again. Sure, there are detractors who say the new Bentleys are just Phaetons in drag, but they miss the point. Bentleys are all about the soul. And Volkswagen has found the long buried soul of Bentley and placed it firmly at the heart of their cars.

Unlike its coupe brother, that I found very slightly disappointing when I first drove it, the Flying Spur was as close to the perfect Bentley as I could imagine. It had oodles of power, and not bad handling, but it cosseted driver and passenger alike in a cocoon of sybaritic luxury – nothing this side of a Phantom came close. And that was its strength; it knew what it should do, and it did it perfectly. But now there’s a speed version. Hmm.

I shouldn’t be surprised that there is now a Bentley Continental Flying Spur Speed for sale. Every manufacturer looks for niche markets to fill, and I’m sure there is a market for a sporting Albert Hall. But in the same way that I always preferred the Arnage R to the Arnage T, I don’t really ‘get’ the Speed. I admire it hugely, and it is fun to drive, but around town, and on anything other than perfect roads, it’s just too stiff. Paradoxically, I absolutely adore its coupe brother, the Continental GT Speed, as that is exactly the car the original GT should have been from the start. It’s what you want in a GT coupe; oodles of power, terrific handling and exceptional feedback from the road. But I don’t really want that in a big saloon car.

The new Speed gets the same power upgrade as the GT Speed, and similar tweaks to body styling and suspension. It looks great, and it’s a great place to sit. And, on the odd occasion where you want to see what the Albert Hall feels like in a power slide, it is enormous fun. But for my money I’d have the original Flying Spur. It has 99% of the real world power of the Speed, but it’s a much nicer place to be; much more cosseting and relaxing. And, as a two year old buy, it beats the best that the S class can offer in to a cocked-hat!

So, will the Speed be a sales success? It’s hard to say. Unlike the GT Speed, where I firmly believe that every prospective buyer should choose it over the standard car, I truly believe that anyone wanting a big, impressive, luxury limousine should go for the standard car. They will sell, just like the Arnage T did, but not in the way I’m sure Bentley hope.

Great Car. But a step too far for me.

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