2010 Continental Flying Spur Speed, 1-owner Pristine California Car, Warranty!! on 2040-cars

Auto blog

2013 Bentley Continental GT Speed Convertible

Loses its Head, Keeps its Bespoke Cool
This is the 10th anniversary of the Bentley Continental GT, the 5,500-pound shim that pried open the market for bespoke luxury at $150K. We're into the second generation of the supercoupe that is still - and we think unfairly - derided as a grossly exaggerated Volkswagen, which to us is like saying the Hulk is just Bruce Banner in a tizzy. There are credible grounds for both statements, but in neither case do they accurately convey the chasm between the alpha and the omega.
Nevertheless, checking off the list of updated models brings us to the Bentley Continental GT Speed Convertible, the moderately augmented version of the non-Speed GTC. Back to the notion of unfairness, it's probably just that to say the GT Speed Convertible is only "moderately" changed. It did, after all, take Bentley three years to engineer the changes that separate your 'basic' Bentley from the Speed variant, and although they might be imperceptible, they are numerous.

Bentley unveils Rhys Millen's Pikes Peak Continental GT for record attempt

At the end of it all, Rhys Millen might end up owning every Pikes Peak car record that exists. He's time-trialed the perilous mountain road in several wildly different types of vehicles, such as a Hyundai Genesis coupe racecar, the Hyundai RMR PM580-T, the Drive eO PP01 electric racecar, and a Bentley Bentayga. For 2019, Millen's at it again, and he's sticking with his new team at Bentley. On June 30, Millen will gun for the production car record time in a Continental GT. That Millen will drive a Continental GT is not exactly breaking news, as it was first announced in March. However, this is the first time Bentley has shown off the Continental GT's attention-catching Pikes Peak outfit. A matte bright green covers most of the car, with a geometric mountain range crawling up the midsection through the rear. In addition to sponsor stickers from Mobil 1 and Gran Turismo, the GT also wears No. 100 as a nod to the company's 100th anniversary. Millen will try to push the Continental GT from 9,300 feet above sea level to 14,100 feet faster than 10:26.9, the hill climb record for a production car. He'll be working against the GT's 5,985-pound gross vehicle weight, but that shouldn't be a problem with a twin-turbocharged 6.0-liter W12 under the hood. The Continental GT, which will race stock aside from safety equipment, is rated at 626 horsepower at 6,000 rpm and 664 lb-ft of torque at 1,350 rpm. It comes from the dealership claiming a 0-to-60 mph time of 3.6 seconds and a 207-mph top speed. An active all-wheel-drive system and Bentley Dynamic Ride should help Millen keep the car under control during turn after turn after turn up the mountain. If Millen succeeds, it would be a huge victory for Bentley, which would then own the production SUV and car records. Rolls-Royce can't do that.

Volkswagen profit jumps as it warns of a cooling auto market

FRANKFURT, Germany — Volkswagen says its profits jumped 44% in the third quarter thanks to a more profitable mix of vehicles in its lineup but warned that global car markets are slowing more than expected and lowered its forecast for annual sales. After-tax profit rose to $4.42 billion (3.98 billion euros) as revenues rose 11% to $68.27 billion (61.42 billion euros). The sales margin of 7.8% exceeded the goal of 6.5-7.5% as vehicles bringing higher profits took a larger share of sales. The Wolfsburg-based automaker pointed to the headwinds facing the industry by saying that it expects "vehicle markets will contract faster than previously anticipated in many regions of the world." It said sales would be "on a level" with last year's record of 10.8 million vehicles. Previously it had expected a slight increase. The company said its profits would be in the lower end of its forecast range. Global automakers are facing a slowdown in sales amid disputes over trade and from pressure in the European Union and China to develop and sell low-emission vehicles that require heavy investment in new technology. Ford and Renault have issued profit warnings in recent days, while Daimler, maker of Mercedes-Benz luxury cars, lost money in the second quarter and is expected to outline a cost-cutting strategy for investors on Nov. 14. Volkswagen is leading the push into electric vehicles in Europe by launching its ID.3 battery-powered compact car at prices it says will make zero local emission vehicles a mass phenomenon. The company was able to increase earnings in the quarter despite an 18% rise in spending on research and development.