2007 Bentley Continental Flying Spur Review
October 27, 2007 by Karl Peskett
The Continental Flying Spur was developed and designed in parallel with its sibling, meaning that the same traditions carried throughout. According to Bentley, the design brief was simple – No compromise. “The Continental Flying Spur is a brilliant example of how to match world-beating technologies with renowned craftsmanship,” says Bentley chairman Dr Franz-Josef Paefgen.
“It is a performance car but not at the cost of comfort, and as such represents a unique proposition – a sumptuous and spacious four-door Grand Tourer with the heart and soul of a high-performance coupé.”
That heart has an interesting story. First developed for the VW Phaeton, the 6 Litre W12 engine was taken apart and re-engineered to suit the Bentley image. No paltry 300 or so kilowatts was going to do the trick for the Brits. The solution? Twin-turbos, thank you very much.
The addition of forced induction promptly bumped up the power to a colossal 411kW or 552hp in the old money. Torque was lifted to a staggering 650Nm, but the most interesting part is the amount available at 1600rpm – all of it. The torque curve does not drop off for the entire rev range. Turbo lag? “Excuse me, this is a Bentley. We don’t have to live with such a compromise.” This is evident, too, the moment you put your foot down. No matter which gear, no matter what revs, the Flying Spur just surges forward with a huge shove in the back. Throttle position is irrelevant, as the powerband is 4500rpm wide.
Probably the most fascinating developmental phase of the motor, is the durability testing. Tests which see the W12 prove its worth, would decimate a garden variety engine. For example, to demonstrate the powertrain’s ability to withstand extremes in temperature, the engine is put through prolonged thermal shock cycling.
This involves running the engine up to its peak internal temperature followed by an immediate draining of the coolant. The coolant is replaced by ice-cold fluid in order to create the quickest possible temperature difference, before the engine is re-heated up to maximum temperature again and the process repeated several times.
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My anti spam word was Bentley……spooky!!!!!!!!!
More than a car……a work of art!
Fantastic review ! Gob smacked!!!!!!!!!!
This old man’s car does absolutely nothing for me. It looks dated already. The Continental GT, now that’s a car W.O. would have been proud of. By the way, the rear tray tables are half as wide as those in the 1969 Rolls Royce Silver Shadow which would surely have more interior room than the Bentley. Better looking car too!
The front end looks a bit too much like the Cadillac CTS. :-\
Lol, my anti-spam word was bentley aswell. It is a good looking car, the GT is even better.
yum, yum, yum! can i have one mum? pleeeeease? lol
I’ve driven one and at high speed too! Not a Motorkhana weapon and needs a big parking space. It won’t fit in my garage! Driving it was sheer joy for me though. Great power and fantastic handling for such a big car. I found driving the Spur to be a better experience than driving the GT strangely enough. If you can’t afford to buy it you can’t afford to run it though. Heavy on the juice but oh so good!
My Anti-Spam word was bentley also……………………..there is something going on!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Ah…Yes it is a nice car!!!!