21 Jun 06
Which is why, for instance, it rides superbly and feels incredibly structurally stiff for a convertible capable of carrying four adults in comfort. Its roof has been beautifully engineered to give near-saloon levels of refinement up to 100mph and also to fold or unfold in less than 25 oh-so elegant seconds. Surprised to see the roof is canvas rather than steel? Well that would have spoiled its lines and added even more to its weight just so the Azure could become two cars in one which, as Bentley fairly points out, is a somewhat pointless pursuit when the average Azure customer already owns between five and 12 cars. If it's raining, they'll take the Rolls. Or the Ferrari, Merc, other Bentley... the list is long. There is also the not insignificant consideration that it would torpedo entirely the still-secret coupe version of this car that'll arrive next summer.
But the best bit of this car remains under that regal bonnet. Bentley's top brass are already working on how to celebrate in 2009, the year in which its legendary all-alloy V8 celebrates its 50th birthday. A couple of years back the last few widgets that were interchangeable with that fitted to a 1959 6.3-litre Bentley S2 disappeared, but there's no doubting its pedigree. It may offer nearly three times the power as the original (and less than 1% of the toxic emissions), but its bloodline is straight and certain. Its character also remains unique. It's the only true luxury car engine in the world that would dare fob its owners off with a four-speed gearbox but, the truth is, so vast are its reserves of power and torque (450bhp and 645lb-ft, respectively), it simply doesn't need any more gears. Caress the throttle at any speed and in any gear and it just goes.
It's an engine that does distant thunder better than any in my experience and, even in a car weighing nigh on 2.7 tonnes, it still feels fairly fleet. Indeed any car that can reach 60mph in less than 6sec still deserves to be thought of as truly fast, not least when backed by a top speed of 168mph. It doesn't feel savage when it accelerates, for that is not the Bentley way; but it does feel inexorable, at least until you're travelling fast enough for you to become more preoccupied with staying out of jail.
