GENEVA — The 2010 Bentley Continental Supersports, which will roar into the 2009 Geneva Auto Show next week, sounds like the ultimate automotive oxymoron. It's the fastest and most powerful Bentley ever, but it also gives a nod to the green movement, since it can run on gasoline or E85 — or any combination of the two.
The two-seater Continental Supersports — also dubbed the Extreme Bentley — will be available in the U.S. starting in October, said Bentley spokesman David Reuter.
"We'll announce pricing closer to the on-sale date," he told Inside Line in response to an e-mail query. "But directionally you can figure a healthy 20 percent premium to [the] GT Speed, which today starts at $203,600."
Not to spoil Bentley's party, but its green, 621-hp Continental Supersports may be a bit of a gas hog. While the EPA has yet to post official ratings, Reuter said the company estimates that its new baby will return 13 miles per gallon in city driving and 24 mpg on the highway. The city driving number for the Continental Supersports is worse than that of the 2009 Hummer H3 4WD model, which returns 14 mpg in city driving, according to the EPA.
Bentley said the Continental Supersports, with its re-engineered W12 engine, will be flex-fuel compatible in most markets "from launch" but that North American cars will not have the capability until summer 2010.
The new model heralds a major shift in strategy at Bentley, since it is the first time the British marque has offered a flex-fuel vehicle. "This represents stage one of the company's commitment to make its complete model range compatible with renewable fuels by 2012," Bentley said in a statement.
The Continental Supersports is equipped with a 6.0-liter W12 twin-turbocharged engine that produces 621 horsepower and 590 pound-feet of torque. Bentley said the car sprints from zero to 60 mph in 3.7 seconds and has a top speed of 204 mph. Engineers were able to achieve a weight reduction of 243 pounds versus the Continental GT Speed. Bentley said that the car's standard carbon-ceramic brakes are the "largest and most powerful brakes ever fitted to a production car."
The key exterior cue that distinguishes the Continental Supersports from the rest of the lineup is a "dark smoked" steel finish to all exterior brightware, including front grilles, lamp bezels, window surrounds and wheels. Flared rear wings accommodate the 2-inch-wider rear track, noted Bentley. Four new exterior colors are available exclusively for the Supersports, including pearlescent Ice and Quartzite, along with two matte colors, Light Grey Satin and Dark Grey Satin.
In the cabin, rear seats are replaced by a stowage deck with a carbon-fiber luggage retaining beam.
"The 'Supersports' name is inspired by the original two-seater three-liter Supersports model introduced in 1925," said Bentley in a statement. "The lightweight, 85-hp Supersports was the first production Bentley to reach 100 mph and was also renowned for the application of Le Mans-winning race technology."
Inside Line says: Bentley ups the ante with its biofuel Continental Supersports, presumably giving us the best of both worlds. If this is the first step in a green strategy, can an electric or fuel-cell Continental be far behind? — Anita Lienert, Correspondent
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