2005 Bentley Continental GT GT W12 Six litre from UK and Ireland

Summary:

Awesome, awesome and then some!

Faults:

Nothing.

General Comments:

This is a quality product that virtually no other supercar seems to match. My new Mercedes E-class is hardly 'rubbish' but it does seem so very cheap after driving the Bentley. The same goes for our DB7 and the Jaguar I have just sold.

It can outperform most road going cars and yet can be a luxury cruiser whenever you wish--this car does not look out of place rolling up to the Savoy, but a few hours later it could be flowing down an autobahn at 200 miles an hour!

The harsh ride and raucous noise of a low slung sports car is replaced by a deep growl and a truly wonderful sensation of solidity and fine engineering. I never tire of using it although depreciation calls for some measure of mileage control!

Whilst it has four seats, I have only driven it fully occupied for a hundred miles or so. No one was uncomfortable, but I cannot comment on really long distance travel with four up.

Naturally, reliability has been excellent and I have been impressed enough to put a new one on order for as soon as possible. This one will have 'electric' doors and boot lid---a considerable improvement on earlier models and a major reason for the change.

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Yes

Review Date: 13th January, 2007

18th Apr 2007, 05:50

Ha-ha-ha. Nothing has broken after 6000 miles of usage! Unbelievable reliability!!!

31st Jul 2008, 21:58

Do you know your car is basically a VW Phaeton?

21st Jun 2009, 18:32

As a Butler I have driven two of these cars in different jobs. The electric parking brake loves to seize. The tires develop flat spots over a holiday being parked. Front plastic grill is the wrong size and shape for the hood. Panel gaps are vast.

I have seen the engine overheat in the desert. Watch out or you'll get a surprise at how hot the front fenders become. Apparently the car's skin is part of its cooling system. Low speed ride is noticeably under-damped, surprising for a British limo.

The cruise control works superbly with that engine. Take-off from a stop is not so quick. There is simply too much mass to overcome. The dealer told me the car has two batteries and 50 processors on-board. If both batteries go flat it is apparently a major problem.

24th Apr 2011, 17:32

Man, these cars should be perfect for like a quarter million dollars?

25th Jul 2011, 15:36

Yes, one would think that these cars should be "perfect", but the truth of the matter is an automobile is a machine, and machines are hardly "perfect".

2006 Bentley Continental GT 6.0 W12 twin turbo from UK and Ireland

Summary:

My new love... but don't tell the Lady!

Faults:

Battery went flat and the car would not start. Dealer talked me through the problem over the phone and I found out it was my fault entirely. They promptly arrived to take the warning lights off the dashboard and supplied me with a battery conditioner as a courtesy item, very nice of them too!

Otherwise no faults.

General Comments:

Decided to go for the Conti GT, as although the DB9 is a great looking car, it spent more time in the dealer's garage than it did in mine.

Love the car's performance, it accelerates rapidly right from word go and pulls like a rocket. The sound is quite unique and really hits you in the chest when motoring on down the road.

Gear changes are very smooth and I like the way the auto box holds the gears so that you reap the benefits of engine braking.

The brakes themselves are fantastic, but the parking brake is a little noisy when applied and released.

The car has variable damping and adjustable ride height, and although the ride is usually excellent, it can get a little bumpy on very rough roads.

Very easy to drive both around town slowly and along country roads quickly, although it is quite wide and oncoming motorists don't take too kindly to you hogging the road in a 'Toad of Toad Hall' manner! Fantastic on the motorways and wide sweeping roads. It has a speed warning facility that has proved invaluable to my license as three figure numbers approach all too quickly with no sense of speed when cruising.

The interior is a really nice place to be. I like the chrome detailing and the bullseye air vents, and I take my decision to go with contrasting white cross stitching on black leather as spot on, as it looks superb. The seats are very comfy and the optional massage is relaxing during a long journey.

Road noise on some surfaces can creep into the car though, unlike my brother's Arnage, which is very quiet.

Fairly surprised when I first peeped inside the luggage compartment on these cars, it really is quite large and swallows my clubs with ease.

Overall I am very pleased with my purchase and only wish I had put my name down for the convertible version earlier, as the waiting list is well over a year. Planning a tour of Europe next year, and if all goes well and I still have her, she will be my choice companion... Oh and I suppose the good Lady can come along too.

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Yes

Review Date: 21st September, 2006

2nd Sep 2007, 17:48

That is a nice car - YOU LUCKY DOG!!

23rd Feb 2008, 17:53

How does someone with the money to buy this vehicle find time to write reviews!!! I love it...

23rd Jun 2008, 13:58

I love it when people with expensive cars write a review, there is always some fool questioning "how does a wealthy person have the time to write a review?". You obviously don't know many wealthy people! They are human beings like the rest of us, and don't actually work 24 hours a day you know! Also, how long does it actually take to write a review? 5 - 10 minutes, hardly a long time is it out of a persons "busy" day?!

PS. Good review, hope you aren't too busy being rich to read my comment.

28th Jul 2009, 18:10

I wanted to say that this is a great review. While the GTC is not my first choice, I am starting to think it is the ONLY choice.

F430 - incredible, but too flashy, too expensive to maintain

Gallardo - apparently it burns up clutches every 3500 miles. Nice.

All other Ferraris and Lamborghinis - getting too old to dare drive, or honestly too powerful to be practical (I'm looking at you, Murcielago).

Older Bentleys - scared they will break or be impossible to fix

Aston - design just seems uninspired, and apparently still in the shop all the time

Rolls - too bling and WAY too expensive.

The only cars that seem to be able to be fulfilling and daily-drivable other than your GTC are the Maserati Gran Turismo (I love the rear and the interior, but I worry that the front will not age well, nor the turret grilles on the side), a 911 (there are only 1000 on the road every day, and most can't tell the difference between a GT3 and a '02 Carerra), or the Audi R8 (again, just worried that the styling will be too radical - I hate the giant mismatched color stripe on the side, and I'd rather keep a car that will look good for a while).

So even though the car just looks a bit bulky to me, I see them with decent mileage selling on eBay, so the German bits must have helped the reliability quite a bit.

I am so sick of exotic car manufacturers screwing over buyers; I am hoping VW/Bentley will make the decision - just make a car that is high performance and reliable, and people will buy it.

24th Dec 2014, 12:54

Very well said... make the damn car reliable!