Bentley Continental GT Speed 2023 Review

It seems safe to assume that no one is saving up to buy a 2023 Bentley Continental GT Speed and as such there’s an element “if you have to ask…” to its price.

This is especially the case when it comes to the business of optional extras, which we’ll go into more detail on in the next section.

Still, if you’re curious, the Speed starts at $551,600 plus on-road costs in coupe guise, a substantial $120,000 or so premium over the Bentley Continental GT V8.

There has traditionally been a standard Continental GT W12, but according to Bentley’s website this is no longer offered in Australia, so if you want 12 cylinders it’s the Speed or nothing. A convertible version is also available, if that’s your preference.

It’s also worth noting the ‘plus on-road costs’ disclaimer. On your typical hatchback on-road costs might add a few thousand dollars, and on a premium car perhaps $10K, but when stamp duty alone on the Bentley is in the region of $50,000 you can count on a drive-away price well north of $600,000.

At this level of the market competitors are relatively numerous, though all have a slightly different focus to one another. The Bentley’s chief rival is probably the similarly British Aston Martin DBS Superleggera ($536,412 plus ORCs). But those searching out more luxury might consider the Rolls-Royce Wraith (from $635,000), while keen drivers could look at the Ferrari Roma (from $409,888) or Porsche 911 Turbo S (from $506,200).

And then there’s the options. The 2023 Bentley Continental GT Speed comes with plenty of equipment standard, especially as Australian cars include the City Specification (top-view camera, AEB, rear cross traffic alert, park assist, auto-dimming door mirrors and hands-free boot opening) and Mulliner Driving Specification (22-inch wheels, diamond-quilted leather, sports pedals, jewel fuel filler and oil cap and embroidered Bentley emblems).

From there, however, the sky is the limit and the world is your oyster, with our test car listed at $690,932 plus on-roads thanks to an extensive list of extras, including the Candy Red paint from the Mulliner range, carbon-fibre body additions, gloss black exterior trim, heated windshield, LED welcome lamps, carbon-fibre interior trim, panoramic glass roof, diamond knurled switchgear, 16-speaker Bang & Olufsen stereo, contrast stitching, mood lighting and much, much more.

It's also possible to spend more should you tick the boxes for big-ticket items like carbon-ceramic brakes and bespoke paint finishes, which Bentley will happily accommodate.

The good news is that from 2023 Bentley is including five years’ complimentary servicing, a saving of more than $10,000. Intervals are 12 months or 16,000km but its warranty offering now lags behind the mainstream brands at three years/unlimited kilometres.

It shouldn’t surprise you to learn that the 2023 Bentley Continental GT Speed has not been officially crash tested by Euro NCAP and as such does not have a safety rating.

Its safety credentials are sound, however, though a lot of active equipment is optional.

There are airbags aplenty, and as mentioned previously, autonomous emergency braking (with pedestrian warning), rear cross traffic alert and a top-view camera are standard, while our test car also featured the Touring Specification, which adds Active Lane Assist, Bentley Safeguard Plus (high-speed AEB) and the cool-but-questionably-useful night vision.

Until relatively recently premium manufacturers (Ferrari, Aston Martin, Bentley et al) lagged well behind more humble makers in terms of infotainment technology, but thankfully that’s no longer the case.

While the 2023 Bentley Continental GT Speed isn’t necessarily cutting-edge in the fast-moving world of automotive tech, it’s up-to-date with a responsive touch-screen infotainment system featuring digital radio, wired Apple CarPlay, Wi-Fi hotspot, over-the-air sat-nav updates, and app integration.

The digital instrument cluster can show a number of different features including navigation, audio or the aforementioned night vision.

A neat trick is Bentley’s optional rotating display, which can hide the central infotainment screen and replace it with a trio of analogue gauges or merely just blank dash. Perfect for those on a digital detox.

Under the bonnet of the 2023 Bentley Continental GT Speed is a 6.0-litre twin-turbo W12 engine with stratospheric outputs of 485kW and 900Nm.

This launches 2273kg of leather-clad grand tourer to 100km/h in just 3.6sec, reaches 160km/h in 7.7sec and on to a scorching top speed of 335km/h.

This power is fed to all four wheels via an eight-speed dual-clutch gearbox that is programmed to shift twice as quickly in Sport mode as the standard car.

The all-wheel drive system has also been calibrated to send more power than normal to the rear wheels, and there is now an electronically-controlled limited-slip differential at the rear, a first for Bentley.

Despite the ability to switch off six cylinders when cruising and a ‘sail’ feature in the dual-clutch gearbox, ‘fuel efficiency’ and ‘6.0-litre twin-turbo W12’ are mutually exclusive terms.

The combined-cycle claim is 14.6L/100km for the 2023 Bentley Continental GT Speed, but in urban or enthusiastic use this can easily climb into the 20s and beyond.

Still, the 90-litre fuel tank capacity means visits to the pump won’t need to be too frequent.

If Bentley’s aim was to make the 2023 Bentley Continental GT Speed its most dynamic model ever, then it’s undoubtedly succeeded.

It’s truly remarkable how composed and responsive it is given its size and weight. Making it so takes an awful lot of technology and some very large mechanicals.

Spare a thought for the brakes tasked with stopping 2.3 tonnes motivated by 485kW. No easy feat, which is why there are 420mm discs with 10-piston callipers at the front and 380mm discs and four-piston callipers at the rear.

If that’s insufficient, larger carbon-ceramic discs are optional which increase the size to 440mm (front) – that’s 17.3 inches, or larger than the entire wheel on a typical car – and 410mm (rear).

The huge tyres – 275/35 front, 315/30 rear – work equally hard and are given their best chance at sticking to the road through electronic and mechanical wizardry.

Three-chamber air suspension, continuously adaptive dampers, active all-wheel drive, torque vectoring, active anti-roll bars, that electronic rear diff…

It all works overtime to keep the weight in check and put as much of that power as possible to the road.

And it works. The GT Speed is so fast it’ll make your head spin, with total traction and its power and mass making for a unique sensation. Chop the car and engine in half and you’d have around 245kW and 1150kg, something like a Lotus Exige, but that would be a very different type of performance.

The closest experience is when an aeroplane takes off, the sensation of something enormous moving very quickly, only the Bentley is way, way faster.

It’s also faster than it feels, the car’s refinement softening the shock slightly. It was only after I got out of the Speed into a Mazda3 G25 that its true power became evident.

Granted, a Mazda3 isn’t a particularly quick car, but after the Bentley it felt barely capable of forward motion.

The W12 engine is also something quite different. It actually sounds and feels a lot like a BMW inline six only with an absurd amount of power.

Early iterations were very smooth but aurally quite nondescript. But there’s now a nice, muted growl under acceleration with some pops and burbles on the overrun in Sport mode.

Nevertheless, the V8 Continental GT is definitely more pleasing to the ears of petrolheads.

In corners, the GT Speed steers accurately with huge grip, the chassis trinkets doing their utmost to eliminate body roll and keep everything under control. It’s undoubtedly impressive, but its size and weight puts a ceiling on its abilities.

It never feels truly agile and the active anti-roll system means it’s difficult to feel where the limit is.

This is especially apparent in the wet where the GT Speed proudly displays its greater rear-drive bias, the rear-end sliding around under acceleration, the ESP system quickly mopping up any excess and preventing expensive overexuberance.

Simply put, as impressive as the Continental GT Speed is, lighter rivals offer a more involving driving experience.

Where the Bentley hits back is in its grand touring capabilities. Its increased athleticism hasn’t unduly impacted its ability to serenely waft.

Ride comfort remains very good, it’s extremely quiet – the windows are double-glazed – and just a very soothing place to be.

Early Continental GTs had a bit of the trademark dual-clutch stumble at low speed, which was a bit unbecoming in a car such as this, but Bentley seems to have engineered this out as the Speed’s behaviour was in general quite smooth.

The coupe body and very thick A-pillars can make vision a challenge, and the steering has a reasonable amount of weight, but the rear-wheel steering doesn’t just help when driving at the limit, but reduces the turning circle at parking speeds by a very useful amount to improve the Bentley’s manoeuvrability.

My one (perhaps churlish) complaint with the interior of the 2023 Bentley Continental GT Speed is that the new-generation car has lost some of the character of the old.

The previous Continental GT had a beautiful winged dash that mimicked the design of the Bentley badge and was a lovely design touch. It felt special.

The new car’s cabin is less extrovert, more ‘standard’, but it remains a very nice place to be.

The more you poke around and closer you look the more there is to be impressed by. Surfaces that would be plastic even in quite expensive luxury cars are clad in leather and carpet in the Bentley.

The centre console is a bit of a button-fest but easily learned and preferable to burying every function in the infotainment screen.

One key feature the Continental GT’s rivals lack is rear seats. Or should I say useable rear seats. Yes, the Porsche 911 Turbo S has rear accommodation but it’s most definitely a 2+2 whereas the Bentley is a proper four-seater.

Space is a little tight for adults (I’m 180cm) but older children would be perfectly comfortable and both sides are ISOFIX-equipped.

The downside of this rear seat space is a fairly small boot given the size of the car, though it’s still large enough for plenty of soft bags, a suitcase or two or the golf clubs.

This is a tougher question than it may seem. In a vacuum, the 2023 Bentley Continental GT Speed is a wonderfully desirable car. Absurdly fast, extremely capable, very luxurious, comfortable, relaxing and with almost limitless personalisation options.

But in the wider context of the sporting grand tourer market, I’ve changed my mind multiple times.

The greater dynamic ability of the Speed comes with no real demerit, so if you want a Continental GT with 12 cylinders then go for it. Likewise, it you want the flashiest Bentley available.

It’s just difficult to imagine anyone driving their 12-cylinder Continental in a fashion to appreciate the sharper handling.

It would be fascinating to see the Speed improvements applied to the V8, a car that eggs you on to explore its performance with a thunderous engine note and lighter weight to boot.

Even in standard guise, if you are an enthusiastic driver keen on a Continental GT the V8 would be my recommendation.

Then again, if you’re really after an amazing driver’s car, rivals like the Ferrari Roma and Porsche 911 Turbo S offer greater thrills than the big Bentley.

But the beauty of shopping in this segment is you’re probably in the position to have both.

2023 Bentley Continental GT Speed at a glance:
Price: $551,600 (plus on-road costs)
Available: Now
Engine: 6.0-litre 12-cylinder twin-turbo petrol
Output: 485kW/900Nm
Transmission: Eight-speed dual-clutch automatic
Fuel: 14.6L/100km (ADR Combined)
CO2: 348g/km (ADR Combined)
Safety rating: Not tested