Vehicle Description
In the last couple decades, Bentley has been dominating the
ultra-luxury market in a very big way, and cars like this 2005
Continental GT are the reason why. Born from the short-lived VW
Phaeton, it's the ultimate in both performance and luxury. Featured
in slick Beluga black paint and lots of bling, it's certainly not
subtle, but if you're the kind of guy who kicks in a door to
announce your arrival, this is your car. A low-mileage,
time-capsule exotic with unrivaled speed and style for a fraction
of the original retail price, is this even real? Don't adjust your
screen, because this GT definitely is, and we can't believe it
ourselves.
With just two doors and a close-coupled body, you are nevertheless
struck by its presence-this sucker is big! But there's power in
every curve, from the broad front end filled by those iconic mesh
Bentley grilles to the gracefully bunched rear quarters that look
like a big cat ready to pounce. Finish quality, as you'd expect, is
extraordinary, with nary a blemish in the surface that was
hand-rubbed by the artists in Bentley's state-of-the-art factory.
Every panel is carefully fitted and if any part doesn't measure up
to their demanding quality standards, it's pulled and replaced
before the car even goes out the door. As a result, you will be
surprised by how easily the big doors open, how well they seal up,
and how amazingly smooth the car is overall. For nearly $170,000
when it was new, I guess that kind of extraordinary craftsmanship
should be expected. Even so, you aren't prepared for how nice this
car really is in person. Sure, it's had some miles on the clock and
there are a few very minor signs of age and use, but nothing near
what the mileage would indicate. Even after 18+ years, this is
still the nicest car on the block pretty much anywhere it goes.
That goes double for the interior, which is covered in acres of
Hotspur red leather and lots of individually mirrored and
unbleached Burr Walnut wood veneer on the dash fascia and console.
These ultra-soft premium hides are amazingly comfortable and the
seats underneath are supportive enough for the dramatic sporting
moves this Bentley delivers. There are a few incredibly small signs
of use (the leather can't be both that soft and completely
impervious to wear, although you have to really stretch to find
anything to complain about inside this cabin), and thanks to a set
of durable floor mats, the black wool carpets are in exemplary
condition. Always meant to be a driver's car, there's a complete
array of instrumentation with big, legible analog dials and lots of
technology that makes life easier without being obtrusive. All the
shiny bits are real metal that's been chrome plated like it was
going on a Pebble Beach show car, and every switch and lever feels
hefty, so the quality is literally tangible in everything you
touch. That beautiful steering wheel is hand-stitched and features
multi-functions at a finger-length reach, there's a Breitling
branded timepiece in the center of the dash, and all that beautiful
Hotspur leather on the headliner, center console, and dash is as
high-end as the hand-stitched hides on the seats. The back seats
are just as sporty and fit two people comfortably, and the trunk
was built with cross-country travel in mind, beautifully finished
and very spacious.
You'll delight in the way the 6.0-liter, twin-turbocharged W12
engine seemingly defies the laws of physics. Nothing this big
should be this fast, but with continuous all-wheel-drive and a
quick-witted 6-speed automatic transmission with a manual-shift
facility, this is a heavyweight that can humiliate anything this
side of a ZR1 Corvette, and even then, it's fast enough to keep
things interesting. It hurtles ahead like a cannonball, the power
so smooth that you aren't aware of how fast you're going until
you're well into felony territory, and just then the rear Aerofoil
automatically deploys and practically taunts you to hit the
throttle a little harder. Bentley engineers also managed to endow
it with exemplary road manners and handling that's the equal of its
acceleration thanks to a top-of-the-line air suspension with manual
driver adjustment for ride height and damper settings, and the
power disc brakes are some of the largest ever fitted to a
production car. And thanks to VW engineering behind it, it turns
out that these are some of the most reliable supercars ever built.
Blacked-out 20-inch wheels carry equally massive Goodyear
performance rubber that plant the power quite effectively, and my
goodness do the look slick.
With great care throughout the years, this well-preserved and
maintained Continental GT is available for a fraction of its
original sticker price. If any ultra-luxury exotic has ever been
considered a screaming bargain, this is it. Call today!