2008 Bentley Brooklands: What's New

Vehicle Overview
If you’re the type who breaks out the ’89 Bordeaux when Google hits $500, Bentley has a car for you. It’s the Brooklands, a new coupe that picks up where the Continental R left off. That means more prestige, more technology and more power. It delivers all of that in spades: Interior decor includes leather-ensconced footwells, and the twin-turbo V-8 makes a thunderous 530 horsepower, the highest output of any Bentley to date.

Bentley plans to build just 550 Brooklands, with deliveries set to begin in the first half of 2008.

Exterior
Bentley says the Brooklands is a “powerful, muscular and rakish grand touring coupe.” Fans of the marque will immediately recognize the Brooklands’ characteristically long hood and short front overhang. The upright grille and quad headlamps look identical to those on the Arnage.

Twenty-inch wheels are standard. The rooftop pillars have hand-welded sheet metal to ensure a fluid appearance, and the “floating” rear window sits unconnected to any seams.

Interior
As expected, the Brooklands comes tailored with swanky insides fit for the rich and famous. The four-passenger cabin treats occupants to leather-covered door panels, lush carpeting and a traditional dashboard peppered with chrome gauges.

In back, a center console divides the outboard bucket seats. To avoid having passengers suffer in cramped quarters, the seats are power-adjustable and retract further back than the ones in the Azure convertible, Bentley says. In case there wasn’t enough cowhide elsewhere, the ceiling features a continuous leather headliner.

Under the Hood
Bentley’s mainstay 6.8-liter V-8 is standard. Drawing air from two turbochargers, the engine makes 530 hp and a breathtaking 774 pounds-feet of torque. A six-speed automatic with a manual shifting provision is standard.

Safety
Information on the Brooklands’ full complement of safety features is not yet available, but it will likely come with all the features in the Azure convertible. That means dual front airbags and side-impact airbags for the front and rear seats, as well as traction control and an electronic stability system.