Tuesday 1st March 2011

Ice Speed Record Bentley Is 'Most Powerful Ever'

Geneva special edition gets 631bhp W12 and reaches 202mph

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Bentley has revealed what it calls the marque's 'most potent and radically styled convertible ever' in the shape of the 202mph Supersports 'Ice Speed Record' convertible - a 100 unit special edition.

The new edition has been launched at Geneva to celebrate Bentley's world ice speed record which was set two weeks ago at 205.48mph by four-time world rally champ Juha Kankkunen in a Bentley Continental Supersports convertible.

The Ice Speed Record convertible gets a 6-litre, twin turbo-charged W12 engine, producing 631bhp - the most powerful Bentley ever - and 590lb ft of torque. Paired with a six-speed automatic transmission, it launches from 0-60mph in 3.8 seconds and reaches 100mph from a standing start in 9.5 seconds.

The additional engine power of the new convertible is the result of fine tuning of the engine to optimise the benefits of the new free-breathing air intake ducts, intercooler system and the exhaust system, the company says.

Large diameter (420 mm front, 356 mm rear), carbon ceramic brake discs, with eight-piston calipers at the front provide stopping power, and the 'Ice Speed Record' is fitted as standard with Pirelli 275/35ZR20 ultra high performance tyres. The car's potent performance is further accentuated by 20" inch, 10-spoke Supersports wheels.

[jbi]

Luxury, power and open top... lovely... that's my kind of car right there

[ludicrous speed]

A car i have never been excited about, and this is no exception, but a big thumbs up to the ice speed record!!

[Fire99]

Does nowt for me. Lacks any degree of elegance.

[Greenpis]

Lovely car, pleasure to drive and British built in an old Brick Shed Ooop North. (Ok, it's hi tech inside, but still looks like an old munitions works from the outside).

What's not to love about this car!

[T33JOB]

Is there any (visual) differences between this and the £150k Supersports? Looks identical to me

[jbi]

Fire99 said:

Does nowt for me. Lacks any degree of elegance.

Rubbish, as far as modern cars go this is near the top

[Kamox]

420mm discs & 8-piston calipers!!! Welcome to the unsprung masses festival!

[ktm301p]

Bentley has revealed what it calls the marque's 'most potent and radically styled convertible ever'

Say whoa?!

Im impressed by this Bentley, but radically styled - really?

[beetroute]

Surely this one should come on studded tyres or at least M&S's as standard fit ....?

[E21_Ross]

jbi said:

Fire99 said:

Does nowt for me. Lacks any degree of elegance.

Rubbish, as far as modern cars go this is near the top

i'm with fire99 on this one. just not as classy as a bentley should be (IMO of course), look at those silly bonnet vents for starters. i'd take an old arnage over this any day.

much more classy:

[mat205125]

the article said:

........ and the 'Ice Speed Record' is fitted as standard with Pirelli 275/35ZR20 ultra high performance tyres.

Sounds perfect for driving on ice.

[ChipsAndCheese]

Yawn. Just another special edition Bentley. Everyone criticises Porsche, but Bentley are equally as bad at producing endless streams of 'new' editions of their models. Likewise Aston, Lotus, Pagani, etc.

Oh, and if that is Bentley's idea of 'Radical styling' then I'd love to know what the official opinion is on Stephen Ireland's abomination.

[TonyHetherington]

Alas, for me, it looks like it's been styled by Gemballa or another equivalent.

Bentley are such a fantastic brand, with years of tradition and stunning cars behind them. I understand why they are appealing to this part of the market, I just think it's a shame they are.

[mat205125]

TonyHetherington said:

Alas, for me, it looks like it's been styled by Gemballa or another equivalent.

Bentley are such a fantastic brand, with years of tradition and stunning cars behind them. I understand why they are appealing to this part of the market, I just think it's a shame they are.

Amen!

Case Closed!

+1000,000.

Abso-feckin-lutely!

[soad]

That's truly mental mind-bending performance for such a big heavy bruiser!
Still, i like them.

Probably would go for a standard supersports - plenty fast enough

[J4CKO]

E21_Ross said:

i'm with fire99 on this one. just not as classy as a bentley should be (IMO of course), look at those silly bonnet vents for starters. i'd take an old arnage over this any day.

much more classy:

My Cousin has driven one of those, a Conti GT and a Speed, the Arnage is not a patch apprently, comparatively slow and wallowy, the Speed is according to him significantly better than the cooking model and noticeably faster, felt quicker than the 911 Turbo he had been driving (997), a bit vicarious
but an objective comparison, basically the Arnage can be as classic, classy as it wants, it just isnt a patch in any other measure.

[CypherP]

Just as well it broke the Ice Speed Record then eh? What would they have called it if it hadn't?

Ice Speed Runner-Up Edition?

[V8 TEJ]

J4CKO said:

E21_Ross said:

i'm with fire99 on this one. just not as classy as a bentley should be (IMO of course), look at those silly bonnet vents for starters. i'd take an old arnage over this any day.

much more classy:

My Cousin has driven one of those, a Conti GT and a Speed, the Arnage is not a patch apprently, comparatively slow and wallowy, the Speed is according to him significantly better than the cooking model and noticeably faster, felt quicker than the 911 Turbo he had been driving (997), a bit vicarious
but an objective comparison, basically the Arnage can be as classic, classy as it wants, it just isnt a patch in any other measure.

I'm with Fire99 too, although I prefer this...

http://pistonheads.com/sales/2356587.htm

[E21_Ross]

J4CKO said:

E21_Ross said:

i'm with fire99 on this one. just not as classy as a bentley should be (IMO of course), look at those silly bonnet vents for starters. i'd take an old arnage over this any day.

much more classy:

My Cousin has driven one of those, a Conti GT and a Speed, the Arnage is not a patch apprently, comparatively slow and wallowy, the Speed is according to him significantly better than the cooking model and noticeably faster, felt quicker than the 911 Turbo he had been driving (997), a bit vicarious
but an objective comparison, basically the Arnage can be as classic, classy as it wants, it just isnt a patch in any other measure.

an arnage isn't about speed though is it! you're comparing apples with oranges. the arnage is a barge-limo-waftmobile. and at that it does it very good.

you can't say an arnage isn't good because it's slow in a straight line and feels wallowy, it's like saying a 911 GT3RS is rubbish because it's not got a massive boot. missing the whole purpose of the car...

[jake15919]

V8 TEJ said:

I'm with Fire99 too, although I prefer this...

http://pistonheads.com/sales/2356587.htm

Absolutely. The whole Conti range leaves me cold, where as a Brooklands...mmmmmm. It's a shame but if I won the lottery most of the cars I would buy would be secondhand.