2027 Bentley Supersports First Drive Review: The Car Bentley Actually Wants to Make

• What is it: The Supersports is Bentley's sportiest take on the Continental GT, of which just 500 will be produced with an asking price of $490,350.
• Why it matters: It produces 657 horsepower, lacks any hybrid assist, and sends power to the rear wheels, making it unique within Bentley's current lineup.
• Edmunds says: While still a large, luxurious grand tourer at its core, the Supersports is distinct and offers a thrilling driving experience.

A Bentley featherweight? 

Whereas a plug-in hybrid Continental GT Speed clocks in at 5,421 pounds, the Supersports sheds 1,023 pounds down to a weight of 4,398 pounds. It's certainly no Porsche 911 GT3 RS (3,268 pounds), but by Bentley standards, this is a huge difference.

The Supersports achieves this figure primarily by binning its plug-in hybrid system, leaving just a 4.0-liter twin-turbo V8 behind. Sporting a strengthened crankcase, revised cylinder heads and larger turbochargers, the V8 now produces 657 horsepower and 590 lb-ft of torque. Bentley then scrapped the Continental GT's all-wheel drive-system, making this the first rear-drive Continental GT. A stronger dual-clutch automatic transmission sends the V8's power rearwards.

While its weight losses are considerable, they are consequential. With no battery pack in the trunk weighing down the rear, the Supersports needs a tall rear spoiler to generate enough downforce to provide balance at high speeds. The wing pairs with a massive front splitter, side skirts, fender blades, dive planes and a rear diffuser, all of which are made of carbon fiber. Even the Conti's roof, normally made of aluminum, is now a carbon-fiber panel. 

Titanium quad exhaust tips, courtesy of Akrapovič, ensure the burbly V8's note reverberates off the pit wall as the Supersports fires into life, sitting on a set of 22-inch forged wheels by Manthey Racing. Massive 10-piston brake calipers shine through gloss black spokes, with rotors measuring 17.3 inches up front and 16.1 inches out back, sporting carbon-silicone-carbide construction for heat management and durability. Pirelli P Zero rubber and Trofeo RS rubber are available; the car I step into rides on the latter. 

An unexpected persona

As I approach Turn 2 at Laguna Seca, the first heavy braking zone after the flat-out crest of Turn 1, I look down and see that the Supersports needs to shed 130 mph. The brake pedal is firm, with a relatively short travel. The heavy Bentley slows rapidly with minimal nosedive. Despite needing to cut so much forward momentum, the Supersports feels instantly stable with no twitchiness as braking forces increase. 

Like the Continental GT Speed, the Supersports rides on air springs paired with two-chamber adaptive dampers and a 48-volt electronic anti-roll system. So as I begin to release the brake pedal and turn into the first of two apexes, the big Bentley is stable with a front end that's eager to change direction. A brake-based torque-vectoring system that shuffles power between the drive wheels, along with rear-wheel steering, ensures that all 4,398 pounds make it through Turn 2, and their implementation is seamless.

The Supersports' suspension is firm enough to precisely highlight the moment the tires reach their grip limits without creating a ride quality that's overly stiff. And while the Bentley's steering remains fairly muted, it picks up weight naturally. Through subsequent corners, the Supersports does a good job of hiding its mass, though its footprint is still evident. It's a big car, and no amount of carbon fiber anything will change that, especially as it turns hard to the left and drips the equivalent of five stories through Laguna Seca's infamous corkscrew. 

Rolling onto the accelerator, the Supersports doesn't struggle to put all of its power down early. It's a case of doing most of your braking in a straight line, being patient through the middle of the corner and trusting the car to manage its power delivery on the way out. It's thrilling, especially if you poke it into a powerside. The Supersports demands that you interact with it moreso than any other Bentley. It's almost like a supersized BMW M2 CS. 

When less is more

As performance cars regularly approach the 1,000-hp mark, or exceed it if they're battery-powered, the Supersports' 657-hp output is comparatively modest. The old Dodge Challenger SRT Hellcat gave you 717 hp while weighing not much more. Even the last generation of the Supersports, when it still housed a 6.0-liter twin-turbo W12, produced 700 hp. 

The new car is slower than its predecessor, too. Thanks in part to its all-wheel-drive system, the second-generation Supersports sprinted to 60 mph in 3.4 seconds, compared to the new Bentley's 3.7-second time. For context, a base 2026 Porsche 911 Carrera ran a 3.5-second 0-to-60-mph time on our private test track. The new Supersports' top speed shrinks, too: The old car topped out at 209 mph, but the new one runs out of steam at 192 mph. 

Will this matter to the 500 people who have already lined up to pay the Supersports' $490,350 base price? I doubt it. The Supersports has morphed from a top-speed cruiser into a car that prioritizes delivering a thrilling experience through corners. 

Of course, there's also the Supersports' cabin, which, despite lacking rear seats, remains as opulent and customizable as any other Bentley. The thing already weighs as much as a Hellcat; there's no sense in skimping out on lavish appointments. The two front seats are unique to the Supersports, with a lower seating position, 11 adjustment options and more aggressive side and thigh bolsters. 

How to build something special

At the end of my two brief stints across Laguna Seca's 11 turns, one thing is clear: The Supersports is best kept off the track. For one, its Trofeo RS tires (the same type we have on our supercharged Ford Mustang Dark Horse) need a decent amount of heat before they hand out their peak performance. Yet it doesn't take more than a handful of full-speed laps before the Bentley's brakes are smoldering. It's a balance between a few quick laps followed by a mandatory cooldown. 

While the Supersports does not make a track car out of a Continental GT, it does turn a large, heavy grand tourer into a performance machine that's exciting to drive.

It stops, turns, and slides like no Bentley I've ever driven. And I likely never will again, considering that all 500 cars are spoken for. The Supersports may not be a featherweight, but it cuts straight through some of the blandness that has befallen Bentley's plug-in hybrid cars. The Supersports shows that, when Bentley builds what it actually wants to build, the results are bound to be special.