Discussion
Been on my mind for a while now to drive one of these and today I did just that and was very impressed.
My dilemma is, I am currently driving a Lamborghini Gallardo spider and the Bentley is totally different.
Im not sure I can get along with the Bentley long term but am considering one as a replacement.
I am just asking people on this forum who are far more experienced with this type of car than me about the "living with the car" aspect.
It will not be a daily used car, just something my wife and I can enjoy at weekends and for longer trips etc.
Thanks
My dilemma is, I am currently driving a Lamborghini Gallardo spider and the Bentley is totally different.
Im not sure I can get along with the Bentley long term but am considering one as a replacement.
I am just asking people on this forum who are far more experienced with this type of car than me about the "living with the car" aspect.
It will not be a daily used car, just something my wife and I can enjoy at weekends and for longer trips etc.
Thanks
Wait until Feb/Mar and try the new V8S. 21 bhp up on the existing V8 and a few other tweaks (ride height etc) but 9k more to buy. I would have thought its in a different league to the Lambo - roomier, more supple and something you could climb out of after 300 mile drive and not know youd been in it (much the same feeling I would no doubt get: having a DB9 at present). Its more GT than sports car but boy what a skin its in. The V8 with sports exhaust sounds superb too.
Agree Tony about the loudness of exhaust. Had a great sounding barely legal Ferrari and it was audibly glorious on the track and you knew what was going on, but on the streets the drooo-ooo-ooo-ne was not tolerable for over 60 minutes or thereabouts. The quiet W12 06 GT/ 07 GTC is much appreciated plus I can easily enjoy music via the sound system 
I have owned a GTC V8 for the last couple of months and generally use it 3 or 4 days of the week.
As a GT it excels, being refined, quiet, smooth, rapid and fairly comfortable. Not as comfortable as some Jaguars I have owned, but comfortable enough to leave you unstressed at the end of a long journey.
As a convertible, with the wind deflector fitted you can go at high speed with little cabin disturbance, though with the deflector fitted you won't get any rear passengers in.
I opted for the sports exhaust as it sounds quite similar to some of the AMGs I have owned, and is a sound I love. In normal driving with the roof up it really is very unobtrusive. Slip it into S and put your foot down and you'll certainly hear the growl. To my mind the sound suits the car perfectly - this is a Bentley and not a Rolls Royce, after all.
Performance is quite good enough. This is a heavy GT and with 500bhp and the 8 speed gearbox, response is sharp at all times. You will have no difficulty keeping pace with all but the very fastest cars on the road in a straight line. I have driven a couple of the new GT Speeds and found the performance difference minimal. For that reason, I wouldn't be inclined to wait for the V8S.
Another reason why I wouldn't miss the small performance increases that a W12 or V8S provides is that this car is most definitely not a sports car. I just don't feel inclined to chuck it through bends and dart in and out of traffic. I drive it pretty hard a lot of the time and make rapid progress, but I never feel like being a hooligan.
Part of this may be because my GTC shares daily driver duties with a 911 Turbo, so when I want a serious drive that's the car I take. And I think that for a Lambo owner, this is an important point. Much as I love my GTC, if it were my sole car there are days when I would be frustrated by it. The things that make it so enjoyable when I am in the mood for it (comfort, refinement etc) are the things that would frustrate me when I am in a sports car mood. I know some will argue that a 911TT is a GT, but believe me, after the Bentley it feels like an Ariel Atom.
I much prefer the look of the GTC over that of the coupe, and one surprise for me has been that the car seems to generate respect rather than the hostility I was anticipating. It certainly gets noticed, and I think the black Mulliner wheels make it stand out from the normal silver wheeled Bentleys.
As a GT it excels, being refined, quiet, smooth, rapid and fairly comfortable. Not as comfortable as some Jaguars I have owned, but comfortable enough to leave you unstressed at the end of a long journey.
As a convertible, with the wind deflector fitted you can go at high speed with little cabin disturbance, though with the deflector fitted you won't get any rear passengers in.
I opted for the sports exhaust as it sounds quite similar to some of the AMGs I have owned, and is a sound I love. In normal driving with the roof up it really is very unobtrusive. Slip it into S and put your foot down and you'll certainly hear the growl. To my mind the sound suits the car perfectly - this is a Bentley and not a Rolls Royce, after all.
Performance is quite good enough. This is a heavy GT and with 500bhp and the 8 speed gearbox, response is sharp at all times. You will have no difficulty keeping pace with all but the very fastest cars on the road in a straight line. I have driven a couple of the new GT Speeds and found the performance difference minimal. For that reason, I wouldn't be inclined to wait for the V8S.
Another reason why I wouldn't miss the small performance increases that a W12 or V8S provides is that this car is most definitely not a sports car. I just don't feel inclined to chuck it through bends and dart in and out of traffic. I drive it pretty hard a lot of the time and make rapid progress, but I never feel like being a hooligan.
Part of this may be because my GTC shares daily driver duties with a 911 Turbo, so when I want a serious drive that's the car I take. And I think that for a Lambo owner, this is an important point. Much as I love my GTC, if it were my sole car there are days when I would be frustrated by it. The things that make it so enjoyable when I am in the mood for it (comfort, refinement etc) are the things that would frustrate me when I am in a sports car mood. I know some will argue that a 911TT is a GT, but believe me, after the Bentley it feels like an Ariel Atom.
I much prefer the look of the GTC over that of the coupe, and one surprise for me has been that the car seems to generate respect rather than the hostility I was anticipating. It certainly gets noticed, and I think the black Mulliner wheels make it stand out from the normal silver wheeled Bentleys.
Seacube said:
I have owned a GTC V8 for the last couple of months and generally use it 3 or 4 days of the week.
As a GT it excels, being refined, quiet, smooth, rapid and fairly comfortable. Not as comfortable as some Jaguars I have owned, but comfortable enough to leave you unstressed at the end of a long journey.
As a convertible, with the wind deflector fitted you can go at high speed with little cabin disturbance, though with the deflector fitted you won't get any rear passengers in.
I opted for the sports exhaust as it sounds quite similar to some of the AMGs I have owned, and is a sound I love. In normal driving with the roof up it really is very unobtrusive. Slip it into S and put your foot down and you'll certainly hear the growl. To my mind the sound suits the car perfectly - this is a Bentley and not a Rolls Royce, after all.
Performance is quite good enough. This is a heavy GT and with 500bhp and the 8 speed gearbox, response is sharp at all times. You will have no difficulty keeping pace with all but the very fastest cars on the road in a straight line. I have driven a couple of the new GT Speeds and found the performance difference minimal. For that reason, I wouldn't be inclined to wait for the V8S.
Another reason why I wouldn't miss the small performance increases that a W12 or V8S provides is that this car is most definitely not a sports car. I just don't feel inclined to chuck it through bends and dart in and out of traffic. I drive it pretty hard a lot of the time and make rapid progress, but I never feel like being a hooligan.
Part of this may be because my GTC shares daily driver duties with a 911 Turbo, so when I want a serious drive that's the car I take. And I think that for a Lambo owner, this is an important point. Much as I love my GTC, if it were my sole car there are days when I would be frustrated by it. The things that make it so enjoyable when I am in the mood for it (comfort, refinement etc) are the things that would frustrate me when I am in a sports car mood. I know some will argue that a 911TT is a GT, but believe me, after the Bentley it feels like an Ariel Atom.
I much prefer the look of the GTC over that of the coupe, and one surprise for me has been that the car seems to generate respect rather than the hostility I was anticipating. It certainly gets noticed, and I think the black Mulliner wheels make it stand out from the normal silver wheeled Bentleys.
You need a Super Sports you wont need 2 cars, then you can drive it docile or when you want to be a hooligan blow the doors of most anything, As a GT it excels, being refined, quiet, smooth, rapid and fairly comfortable. Not as comfortable as some Jaguars I have owned, but comfortable enough to leave you unstressed at the end of a long journey.
As a convertible, with the wind deflector fitted you can go at high speed with little cabin disturbance, though with the deflector fitted you won't get any rear passengers in.
I opted for the sports exhaust as it sounds quite similar to some of the AMGs I have owned, and is a sound I love. In normal driving with the roof up it really is very unobtrusive. Slip it into S and put your foot down and you'll certainly hear the growl. To my mind the sound suits the car perfectly - this is a Bentley and not a Rolls Royce, after all.
Performance is quite good enough. This is a heavy GT and with 500bhp and the 8 speed gearbox, response is sharp at all times. You will have no difficulty keeping pace with all but the very fastest cars on the road in a straight line. I have driven a couple of the new GT Speeds and found the performance difference minimal. For that reason, I wouldn't be inclined to wait for the V8S.
Another reason why I wouldn't miss the small performance increases that a W12 or V8S provides is that this car is most definitely not a sports car. I just don't feel inclined to chuck it through bends and dart in and out of traffic. I drive it pretty hard a lot of the time and make rapid progress, but I never feel like being a hooligan.
Part of this may be because my GTC shares daily driver duties with a 911 Turbo, so when I want a serious drive that's the car I take. And I think that for a Lambo owner, this is an important point. Much as I love my GTC, if it were my sole car there are days when I would be frustrated by it. The things that make it so enjoyable when I am in the mood for it (comfort, refinement etc) are the things that would frustrate me when I am in a sports car mood. I know some will argue that a 911TT is a GT, but believe me, after the Bentley it feels like an Ariel Atom.
I much prefer the look of the GTC over that of the coupe, and one surprise for me has been that the car seems to generate respect rather than the hostility I was anticipating. It certainly gets noticed, and I think the black Mulliner wheels make it stand out from the normal silver wheeled Bentleys.
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