Bentley’s Flying Spur -- voted most powerful
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Sometimes, a 6.0-liter 12-cylinder engine with 552 horsepower isn’t quite enough. The good people at Bentley understand, sympathize and now deliver one that produces 600 hp. They did this with the Continental GT Speed coupe and have now done the same thing with the Flying Spur, the GT’s four-door sibling.
The 2009 Bentley Flying Spur Speed gets a hike in power (through tweaking the engine management) with an upgraded suspension and braking system to contain the extra muscle. This makes it the most powerful sedan the company has ever built. Despite weighing roughly the same as an average English stately home (slight exaggeration), the car still sets off from standstill to hit 60 mph in a mere 4.5 seconds on the way to a 200-mph top speed.
This updated version has a slightly new look, with a more upright radiator grille (for better cooling), revised air intakes just beneath it, a new sleeker rear bumper and a wider sports exhaust. The cabin gets a high-quality audio system (appreciated all the more thanks to some diligent sound deadening) and this is one of the few marques where the word ‘marquetry’ can be used. Also included is an intelligent, radar-based cruise control.
Being Bentley, the company has done nothing so vulgar as to mention money, but since the two-door GT Speed commands a $24,000 premium over the cooking Continental, something along those lines will no doubt apply to the Flying Spur Speed. An estimate of $195,000 shouldn’t be too far off the mark.