Bentley Continental GTC Speed ​​car review

The V-12 engine is dead. Long live the V-12.

In the coming years, supercar companies like Lamborghini, Bentley and Rolls-Royce have all announced the phasing out of their V-12 engines as they enter the era of hybrid and electric vehicles. In the meantime, they crank out 12-cylinder masterpieces as odes to the pinnacle of petrol power – and wealthy customers snatch them at a record clip.

In other words, at the very top of the car market, the 12-cylinder is dying and demand has never been greater.

As the king of combustion draws to a close, Bentley has released the Continental GTC Speed. It is a “W-12” road burner, in which three banks of four cylinders are arranged in a kind of “W” configuration. Its raw power is matched only by its refined interior.

Despite a price approaching $400,000, the GTC Speed ​​is selling fast. Bentley CEO Adrian Hallmar said there were “very few available” before Bentley released the last of its 12-cylinder engines in April 2024.

“These models are almost sold out already,” Hallmark told CNBC. “It’s the end of a great era.

So, with the Continental GTC Speed, Bentley has decided to party like it’s 1999.

The model I drove carried a price tag of $384,000. His color is called “Kingfisher”, a luminescent, shimmering blue that, like his namesake bird, was born to fly. It featured some of Bentley’s most popular options, including black-painted 22-inch “Speed ​​Wheels”, a touring package for added comfort, and generous portions of carbon fiber.

Inside, the GTC Speed ​​was packed with luxury accessories, from the contrast stitching on the seats (with “Kingfisher” and “Beluga” colored threads) to the Bang and Olufsen sound system, to the quilting of diamond precision and shag mats for added foot comfort.

My favorite options, also one of the most popular, are the “rotating display”, where a section of the carbon fiber dash flips over as the car begins to reveal its digital display, much like the supercar version of the secret wall in a mansion library. It costs $6,600 more—but hey, when you’re spending $380,000 on a car, what’s $6,000 more? (About 70% of Bentley owners include it.)

The best part about the Continental GTC Speed ​​is the ride. As befits a car with multiple personalities, the GTC Speed ​​offers three drive modes: Comfort, Custom, Bentley and Sport Enhanced. Driving in comfort mode is like floating on a cloud, even on the pothole-filled streets of New York and New Jersey. Bentley mode strikes a balance between comfort and sport.

You can easily imagine comfort mode ferrying its well-heeled driver to country clubs in Southern California and South Florida, two of Bentley’s biggest markets. All-wheel steering is useful for those rare occasions when you have to park the car yourself instead of having a valet do it.

Switch to sport mode, however, and the W-12 roars like a dragon awakened from sleep. The suspension tightens up and the GTC goes 0-60 in 3.6 seconds. It can reach a top speed of 208 mph.

Even with a curb weight of over 5,300 pounds, the Continental GTC Speed ​​takes turns, stops and accelerations like a much more nimble supercar. Its special windscreen and aerodynamics allow up and down driving even at high speeds without a hair being moved.

Of course, there are better pure sports cars and better luxury comfort cars. But arguably no car has the two – complete with the howling swan song of a W-12 – quite like the Continental GTC Speed.