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Tire Trailblazer
2015 Bentley Continental GT3-R
Your opinion of the maximum Conti will depend on whether you are in or out.
Instrumented Test
From the outside, it’s easy to dislike the Bentley Continental GT3-R. It’s nearly $150,000 more expensive than a base Conti GT V-8. It’s the high-performance model but makes 34 fewer horsepower than the W-12–powered Speed. It’s the “lightweight” version, but it weighs 4937 pounds.
But climb inside, and it’s easy to like the GT3-R. Its 4.0-liter twin-turbocharged V-8, which makes 500 horsepower in the basic Continental GT, cranks out an additional 92 horses with surprising ease. Nominal output is 572 horsepower and 516 lb-ft, but in case you need to get from a standstill to 135 mph in a hurry, it’ll make 592 and 553 for up to 15 seconds. Even if it is for a limited time only, 148 horsepower per liter is impressive output. There’s no noticeable increase in lag, and the engine even lunges for redline with a little extra push between 6000 rpm and the fuel cutoff at 6800. The turbos definitely aren’t running out of breath at high speeds.
the 640-hp Dodge Viper SRT—a car that’s nearly 1600 pounds lighter. That acceleration is also a triumph of gearing. Not only does the car hit 60 mph in 3.4 seconds, it crams two shifts into that span. The ZF eight-speed is programmed for quicker shifts in this car, and it delivers.
Like an increasing number of performance cars today, the GT3-R is engineered to burble and pop on engine overrun. Sometimes it’s a 21-gun salute, sometimes a 24. Other times it’s just 13 or four, or maybe just one big field-cannon boom and a couple of pea-shooter pops, but each time the driver breathes off the throttle, he’s rewarded with a little race-car fanfare. It’s charmingly uncouth in, say, a Jaguar F-type. But in a $341,000 Bentley, it’s the equivalent of a carbon-fiber interior with lizard-green leather accents.
What’s not a question but a surprising reality is the magic that Bentley’s chassis team worked on a vehicle that still weighs very nearly two-and-a-half tons. Its agility transcends its mass and bulk with a neutral balance and responsiveness more befitting something carrying about 2000 fewer pounds—say, the actual GT3 race car. But with a powered 275/35ZR-21 Pirelli P Zero at each corner, the R’s lift-throttle oversteer is easy to catch and re-vector down the next straight.
Bentley has thus far enjoyed a fair measure of success campaigning the GT3 racer in Asia, Europe, and North America. The company is limiting import of the GT3-R and will sell only 99 of them to its wealthiest and most-dedicated fans in the U.S. Each of those buyers will find it easy to like their new toy.
Highs and Lows
Highs:
Exclusivity, drives like it weighs about a ton less than it does.
Lows:
Priced like other luxury items of similarly questionable taste.
Specifications >
VEHICLE TYPE: front-engine, 4-wheel-drive, 2-passenger, 2-door coupe
PRICE AS TESTED: $341,025 (base price: $341,025)
ENGINE TYPE: twin-turbocharged and intercooled DOHC 32-valve V-8, aluminum block and heads, direct fuel injection
Displacement: 244 cu in, 3993 cc
Power: 592 hp @ 6000 rpm
Torque: 553 lb-ft @ 1700 rpm
TRANSMISSION: 8-speed automatic with manual shifting mode
DIMENSIONS:
Wheelbase: 108.1 in
Length: 189.2 in
Width: 76.5 in Height: 55.3 in
Cargo volume: 13 cu ft
Curb weight: 4937 lb
C/D TEST RESULTS:
Zero to 60 mph: 3.4 sec
Zero to 100 mph: 7.7 sec
Zero to 130 mph: 13.3 sec
Zero to 150 mph: 18.5 sec
Rolling start, 5-60 mph: 4.2 sec
Top gear, 30-50 mph: 2.3 sec
Top gear, 50-70 mph: 2.6 sec
Standing ¼-mile: 11.6 sec @ 122 mph
Top speed (drag limited, mfr's est): 189 mph
Braking, 70-0 mph: 159 ft
Roadholding, 300-ft-dia skidpad: 0.89 g
FUEL ECONOMY:
EPA city/highway: 13/23 mpg
C/D observed: 13 mpg
http://www.caranddriver.com/reviews/2015-bentley-continental-gt3-r-test-review
Your opinion of the maximum Conti will depend on whether you are in or out.
Instrumented Test
From the outside, it’s easy to dislike the Bentley Continental GT3-R. It’s nearly $150,000 more expensive than a base Conti GT V-8. It’s the high-performance model but makes 34 fewer horsepower than the W-12–powered Speed. It’s the “lightweight” version, but it weighs 4937 pounds.
But climb inside, and it’s easy to like the GT3-R. Its 4.0-liter twin-turbocharged V-8, which makes 500 horsepower in the basic Continental GT, cranks out an additional 92 horses with surprising ease. Nominal output is 572 horsepower and 516 lb-ft, but in case you need to get from a standstill to 135 mph in a hurry, it’ll make 592 and 553 for up to 15 seconds. Even if it is for a limited time only, 148 horsepower per liter is impressive output. There’s no noticeable increase in lag, and the engine even lunges for redline with a little extra push between 6000 rpm and the fuel cutoff at 6800. The turbos definitely aren’t running out of breath at high speeds.
the 640-hp Dodge Viper SRT—a car that’s nearly 1600 pounds lighter. That acceleration is also a triumph of gearing. Not only does the car hit 60 mph in 3.4 seconds, it crams two shifts into that span. The ZF eight-speed is programmed for quicker shifts in this car, and it delivers.
Like an increasing number of performance cars today, the GT3-R is engineered to burble and pop on engine overrun. Sometimes it’s a 21-gun salute, sometimes a 24. Other times it’s just 13 or four, or maybe just one big field-cannon boom and a couple of pea-shooter pops, but each time the driver breathes off the throttle, he’s rewarded with a little race-car fanfare. It’s charmingly uncouth in, say, a Jaguar F-type. But in a $341,000 Bentley, it’s the equivalent of a carbon-fiber interior with lizard-green leather accents.
What’s not a question but a surprising reality is the magic that Bentley’s chassis team worked on a vehicle that still weighs very nearly two-and-a-half tons. Its agility transcends its mass and bulk with a neutral balance and responsiveness more befitting something carrying about 2000 fewer pounds—say, the actual GT3 race car. But with a powered 275/35ZR-21 Pirelli P Zero at each corner, the R’s lift-throttle oversteer is easy to catch and re-vector down the next straight.
Bentley has thus far enjoyed a fair measure of success campaigning the GT3 racer in Asia, Europe, and North America. The company is limiting import of the GT3-R and will sell only 99 of them to its wealthiest and most-dedicated fans in the U.S. Each of those buyers will find it easy to like their new toy.
Highs and Lows
Highs:
Exclusivity, drives like it weighs about a ton less than it does.
Lows:
Priced like other luxury items of similarly questionable taste.
Specifications >
VEHICLE TYPE: front-engine, 4-wheel-drive, 2-passenger, 2-door coupe
PRICE AS TESTED: $341,025 (base price: $341,025)
ENGINE TYPE: twin-turbocharged and intercooled DOHC 32-valve V-8, aluminum block and heads, direct fuel injection
Displacement: 244 cu in, 3993 cc
Power: 592 hp @ 6000 rpm
Torque: 553 lb-ft @ 1700 rpm
TRANSMISSION: 8-speed automatic with manual shifting mode
DIMENSIONS:
Wheelbase: 108.1 in
Length: 189.2 in
Width: 76.5 in Height: 55.3 in
Cargo volume: 13 cu ft
Curb weight: 4937 lb
C/D TEST RESULTS:
Zero to 60 mph: 3.4 sec
Zero to 100 mph: 7.7 sec
Zero to 130 mph: 13.3 sec
Zero to 150 mph: 18.5 sec
Rolling start, 5-60 mph: 4.2 sec
Top gear, 30-50 mph: 2.3 sec
Top gear, 50-70 mph: 2.6 sec
Standing ¼-mile: 11.6 sec @ 122 mph
Top speed (drag limited, mfr's est): 189 mph
Braking, 70-0 mph: 159 ft
Roadholding, 300-ft-dia skidpad: 0.89 g
FUEL ECONOMY:
EPA city/highway: 13/23 mpg
C/D observed: 13 mpg
http://www.caranddriver.com/reviews/2015-bentley-continental-gt3-r-test-review
