Car of the week – July 30 – Bentley GT3-R

 I am only allowed to take the car for a few hours and I am thinking of all the possible disasters that could happen before I even arrive to collect it. 

However, all those nervous, negative thoughts are immediately vanquished as soon as I set eyes on what is a magnificent looking vehicle. Inspired by the Continental GT3 racing car, this thing is an adrenaline rush on wheels which instantly sets the pulse racing. However, it is not a racing car that has been adapted for the road. It’s a Continental GT V8 S on steroids, made to look like the racing car right down to the white paint job, green flashes with GT3R decals, gorgeous 21-inch black wheels and a rear spoiler.

There is also a  gloss black grille and cooling vents on the bonnet and a carbon fibre splitter on the front which all come together to create a truly aggressive looking piece of kit which almost snarls at you just sitting there in the showroom. 

Inside, you also become immediately aware that this is a limited edition car and one that has shed much of the weight of its other road-going stablemates. For example, there are no rear seats, just a posh luggage shelf and there is no wood trim that you find in most other Bentleys, just lashings of carbon fibre. The green and black upholstery with diamond quilted Alcantara is also unique to the GT3-R. 

I wasn’t overly keen on the green to start  because I thought it slightly cheapened the interior but it  is distinctive and grew on me. The sports seats have additional side support through deeper bolsters and they are extremely comfortable.

This car is actually 100kg lighter than the V8 S it is based on which means it is significantly quicker, so much so that it is the fastest-accelerating Bentley ever built for the road  with a 0-100kmh time of 3.8 seconds. 

For a vehicle that weighs over two tons that is impressive, and was the main reason I could hardly wait to fire it up and take it for a blast.  

Safely belted in I pushed the ignition button and the four-litre, twin-turbo V8, which has been retuned to provide extra performance, barked into life and I could have sat there listening to the steady burble of the engine for hours.  

The engine packs 572bhp and 700nm of torque and is hooked up to a ZF 8-speed automatic gearbox which has also been tweaked to provide shorter gearing. 

There are paddle-shifts but as I have written many times before, I find these too cumbersome, difficult to use unless you have giant sized hands, and Bentley needs to redesign them, particularly in a car like this, so they were redundant. 

To be honest, it didn’t bother me that much, as in sport mode the auto does a splendid job.

So, does it live up to its billing on performance?  Yes, it does and the noise from that engine as you push through the gears with plenty of popping and crackling as you lift off is fabulous, reminding you of its motorsport heritage. 

You can adjust the ride height and dampers to stiffen everything up and the handling is impressive, although you are always aware that, despite its weight loss, this is still a hefty car to stop from high speed, although the carbon silicon carbide cross-drilled brakes do the job.

This car is tremendous fun to drive, combining awesome power with traditional Bentley prestige. 

 Because this is a limited edition Bentley, most, if not all, are probably already sold although if you have the money it might be worth making an inquiry.  Bentley won’t reveal the price but you’re looking at around the Dh1.4million mark for starters, if there is availability. 

Is it worth it? If you are a Bentley fan, and you are loaded, then yes it is, if only for its exclusivity.  It might be a bit bonkers but this Bentley is the business.