2008 Bentley Brooklands

STORY TOOLS
Digg this	del.icio.us

What is it?
2008 Bentley Brooklands

What's special about it?
Here's something with which to conjure: Bentley will build just 550 examples of its new Brooklands coupe, of which only 150 are likely to come to the U.S. That's three for every state or one for every 23,600 square miles. It's not too likely you'll ever bump into a fellow Bentley Brooklands owner at the corner gas station.

Bentley claims that this is the world's most exclusive production coupe, which goes some way to justifying a starting price of around $350,000. Celebrating the 100th anniversary of the famed Brooklands racing circuit with a 530-horsepower version of Bentley's twin-turbo V8, this is an old-school Bentley for those with old-school money. The nouveau riche should make do with the Continental GT.

The Brooklands shares much of its hardware with the Arnage sedan and Azure soft top, but Bentley is anxious to avoid claims that this is no more than a tuned, hardtop version of the cabriolet. The styling takes its inspiration not just from the Azure but also from the Arnage-derived Continental R coupe, which ceased production in 2003.

Dirk van Braeckel, Bentley's director of styling, was charged with the mission to create "a powerful, muscular and rakish grand touring coupe with classic British proportions." The result is a predictable evolution of traditional Bentley themes, with a long hood, a short front overhang, a racy cheese-grater grille and a prominent shoulder line.

The effect is familiar, but there are also some nods to modernity. The side windows are frameless and 20-inch alloy wheels are standard, while Bentley's engineers are particularly proud of the floating, frameless rear window, made possible by hand-welding the rear fenders to the C-pillars.

The cabin architecture will be familiar to drivers of the Arnage or Azure. It's classic Bentley, with lashings of wood and leather, and elegant analog instruments. A single piece of leather hide covers the roof liner from the windscreen to the rear window.

As you'd hope from a car this vast, the Brooklands is a proper four-seater, and Bentley claims more rear-seat leg-, knee and headroom than any other luxury coupe. There are two electrically adjustable rear chairs separated by a center console.

The Brooklands' twin-turbo 6.75-liter V8 is the most powerful engine that Bentley has ever produced. It also produces more torque than any other production-car V8. Engine calibration changes have increased the engine's output by 30 hp to 530 hp, while the already gargantuan torque output rises 36 pound-feet to a slightly silly 774 lb-ft.

Harnessing this power is a six-speed ZF-built automatic transmission, which was introduced for the 2007 Arnage. Performance figures for the Bentley Brooklands are yet to be announced, but expect a time to 60 mph of around 5 seconds and a top speed of about 180 mph.

What's Edmunds' take?
Ultra-exclusive, ultra-expensive and ultra-rapid, this is an old-school Bentley reinterpreted for today's world. Think of it as a stately country home on wheels. — Alistair Weaver, Contributor