As classic, testosterone-fueled, he-man movies go, Tom Cruise in Top Gun ranks as the crème de la crème. Six-g barrel rolls in an F-14 Tomcat, or catapult launches off a carrier. Now that’s neck-snapping performance.
So, presuming that Cruise’s character, Lieutenant Pete ‘Maverick’ Mitchell, rode off into the sunset with Kelly McGillis, landed a job in software and made a killing, what’s he going to drive?
No question about it, a 2010 Bentley Continental Supersports. With a thundering 621 horsepower from its twin-turbo, 12-cylinder, a top speed of 204 mph and a deployable rear wing to prevent it from going vertical, this is the Top Gun of road cars.
Here is quite simply the fastest, most agile, most thrilling Bentley ever offered. And at a whopping $274,000, it is by far the priciest of the Continental trilogy (sedan, coupe and convertible).
Just look at the thing. Lockheed’s Sunk Works could have created our test car’s battleship-gray paint scheme, wicked 20-inch black-painted forged alloys and blacked-out chrome!
The fighter jet analogy doesn’t end there. Open the door, drop down into the seat, and prepare yourself for a shock. In a quest to sharpen the car’s sports car focus, the cabin has gone more minimalist than Philippe Starck’s bathroom.
In place of the usual, exquisitely upholstered Barcalounger-style recliners, there’s now a pair of carbon fiber race buckets that grip you tighter than Mickey Rourke in The Wrestler. To emulate the body-hugging sensation, try sticking your butt in a Rubbermaid kitchen trashcan! As for the back seat, there isn’t one. To shave weight, the rear pews have been replaced by a practical, yet a rather bleak-looking luggage shelf.
Yet despite its minimalism, the car has a true sporting elegance. Carbon fiber cascades across the dashboard. Complimenting the sexy black leather are diamond-quilted, suede-like Alcantara inserts in the seats, door panels and headlining. The whole car is a toybox of tactility.
Then you press the ‘start’ button. As the big 6.0-liter W12 fires-up, it sounds like Godzilla expelling air, or the distant detonation of Semtex. Whoomph. This is aural muscle delivered through twin tailpipes the size of storm drains.
The motor gets an extra 19 horsepower compared to the Continental GT Speed version. That may not sound much, but combine it with a 240-pound weight loss and a tweaked six-speed auto that delivers 50 percent faster shift times, and you get a car that thinks it’s a Cruise missile.
All-wheel drive ensures there’s no unruly smoke-belching burnouts; just pure, rock-from-a-catapult acceleration. Standstill to 60mph is covered in a blistering 3.7 seconds. Zero to 100mph in 8.9. That’s quick. Very quick. Eyeballs-to-the-back-of-the-head quick.
Yet despite its high-testosterone image, the Supersport is a pussycat to drive. It handles beautifully with perfectly weighted, super-accurate steering, and rides with surprising smoothness, even over the most wrinkled asphalt. The grip from those 20-inch gumballs at each corner is breathtaking.
And Al Gore would be proud of the Bentley’s ‘green’ technology. Capable of running seamlessly on
E-85 ethanol bio-fuel, it can reduce total emissions by up to 70 per cent. That’s if you can ever find the stuff.
But make no mistake; this is one exceedingly special machine. Exclusive, hard-core, thrilling beyond belief, it is the perfect car for every Top Gun ‘Maverick’ out there.