Bentley has decided that the world doesn’t have enough lunatics in it. How else do you explain the return of the Continental GT Supersport — a car so wilfully unhinged it feels like something created after a long lunch involving too much claret and not enough adult supervision? Announced in Crewe and limited to just 500 examples, it’s Bentley’s latest reminder that electrification may be coming, but it certainly isn’t welcome at their table just yet.
For the first time in its long, quilted-leather history, the Continental GT has ditched all-wheel drive. Yes, really. A Bentley. Rear-wheel drive. This is the automotive equivalent of sending a cathedral choir out to perform heavy metal — strange, deeply wrong, and absolutely brilliant. Under the bonnet sits a revised 4.0-litre twin-turbo V8 belting out 666 PS, which is frankly a worrying number. Either the engineers have a sense of humour, or they’ve summoned something unholy. With 800 Nm of torque shoving everything through the back wheels, 0–100 km/h takes about 3.7 seconds, and it’ll carry on to 310 km/h, presumably until you run out of road, courage, or both.
And then there’s the weight. Bentleys are normally heavier than most small European nations. But here, they’ve gone mad. Out go the back seats, the all-wheel-drive hardware, and half the insulation. In comes carbon fibre — everywhere — including the roof, splitter, wing, diffuser, and probably the air in the factory. The result? A Continental GT that finally dips under two tonnes. Bentley calls this a “significant milestone.” I call it “about time.”
Naturally, the handling has been re-engineered to deal with the fact all the power now goes straight to the rear. There’s an electronic limited-slip diff, chassis tweaks, and tyres designed to cling on for dear life. Carbon-ceramic brakes the size of dustbin lids, 22-inch forged wheels, and a titanium exhaust complete the package — all very serious, all very un-Bentley in the best possible way.
Inside, Bentley has performed an exorcism. Out go the enormous armchairs and spa-day comfort. In come two bucket seats, less sound deadening, and a simplified audio system that basically shrugs and says, “If you wanted comfort, you bought the wrong one.” It’s Bentley’s most “driver-first” cabin ever, which is a polite way of saying this model isn’t here to waft — it’s here to misbehave.
And why build it at all? Because Bentley isn’t quite ready to kneel before the great plug-in future. This Supersport is their declaration of internal-combustion intent: loud, unapologetic, and gloriously indulgent. Yes, they’re expanding their EV and PHEV line-ups, but this machine is a reminder that engines are not dead — not while Crewe still has petrol in the tank and mischief in its blood.
So here it is: a rear-drive, weight-slashed, carbon-clad, V8-thumping Bentley that exists for absolutely no sensible reason whatsoever. And thank God for that. In a world rapidly filling with silent electric appliances, the Continental GT Supersport feels like a last, defiant roar from the old school — a beautifully engineered protest against the future.