Bentley’s bad tooth May 22, 2009
Posted by richard in : Minutiae of cars , add a commentBENTLEY’S Continental GT amazed me in many ways. Even though I’m not a Premiership footballer, I still quite fancy one.
But, in two respects, it’s bad. Very bad.
Fuel economy.
Obviously so on this one. It does, after all, have a huge W12 engine, fed by turbos, hauling along a hugely heavy car that’s encumbered with four-wheel-drive. Mighty, it sure is: here’s the price.
But there’s more.
Bluetooth. Yes, it has it. But it’s staggeringly bad.
I tried it out. Went like this:
• Find Bluetooth on menu. Eventually.
• Decipher how to pair Bluetooth with phone. Eventually.
• Set Bluetooth to discover phone. Does so. Eventually.
• Find you’re presented with 12-digit pairing code between phone and car.
• Use torturous turn-and-scroll wheel to do this. Eventually.
• Be presented with an error message.
That’s right – a heinously complex process, that didn’t work! I was staggered. Particularly as Bentley is, somehow, having the brass neck to charge big for this.
Contrast this to my Volvo long-termer. There, I paired the phone with the car with ease. Took 30 seconds, simple as pie.
And then? Every time I now get in, it pairs automatically. So long as Bluetooth’s activated on my phone, it pings up in the car. Calls fed through speakers, controls mastered by steering wheel buttons, the lot.
This is technology that works. That someone’s thought about, and a team of engineers have tirelessly perfected.
Bentley? That smacks of a box-tick. A plug-in module that the marketing team said had to be fitted, so was done so, but with no understanding or consideration.
You get this a lot on cars. But, £130k ones? That’s a surprise. Bentley needs to give this bad Bluetooth a tug.
Bentley Continental GTC Speed photo stream on Flickr
Just how loyal are the super-rich?
Fuel economy economical with the truth?
NEW: Bentley Continental GTC Speed photo stream on Flickr March 25, 2009
Posted by richard in : Uncategorized , 2commentsWant to see what I’ve been up to on my latest launch event? Well, check out my Bentley Continental GTC Speed photo stream on Flickr.
And be sure to come back here over the next few days. As ever, I’ll be charging through all my notes and feeding back to you.
Check out the images for a feel of what was what in Crewe!
Pre-launch impressions: Bentley Continental GTC Speed March 24, 2009
Posted by richard in : Uncategorized , add a commentWhat do I expect from the Bentley Continental GTC Speed? Something very, very fast, that’s what.
Last year, I drove both the standard Continental GT Coupe, and the livened-up Speed variant. Both worked together, to turn me from a Conti skeptic into a convert.
First thing I did when I got back home was check out Auto Trader, to see how much early-gen ones went for. (£40k and no I can’t, to pre-empt any questions).
The Speed line, which brings more power, sportier handling and subtly enhanced looks, has already instantly won the majority of GT Coupe sales, and is doing similarly good business for the Flying Spur saloon. Now, it’s the turn of the GTC Convertible.
Coupled with a mild facelift for the 2010 model year, Bentley’s given us the full fat 600bhp Speed drop-top 2+2, creating its fastest-ever convertible in the process. 200mph do ya?
The overriding impression I took from the GT Coupe was one of completeness. This really was a car that tuned into my psyche – it wasn’t particularly overtly sporting, or dramatic, or intense. It was just ‘nice’. Accurate, agile way (way way way) beyond its size and weight, and generally pretty lush.
I blow hot and cold with convertibles. Currently, I’m on a downer with them – preferred the BMW Z4 when it was imitating a Coupe rather than being a Roadster. How will I get on with the Bentley, then? Well, by now, I’ll already know. And will be letting you know in due course…
Just how loyal are the super-rich? March 23, 2009
Posted by richard in : What I learned today , add a commentBentley customers are, sometimes, a loyal bunch. 82 per cent of those who bought, back in 2006, an original GTC still own the car.
Why the ‘sometimes’ proviso? Because that’s for the GTC range, Bentley Board member Stuart McCullough revealed. If you’re looking at the Flying Spur, of course, the loyalty rates are even higher. Customers hold onto their cars for years.
The coupe, however, is different. Such is the fast turnover trend in the market, Bentley Continental GT buyers, on average, keep their car for just 11 months. Less than a year!
That’s the luxury car market for you. In certain sectors, it really is less about the car, and more about what’s ‘new’.
Could part of Bentley’s current troubles run deeper than the credit crunch, then? Be down to the fact its Continental GT is getting on a bit nowadays?
Judging by all the activity at the Crewe HQ, I’d wager the maker realises this, and has been working on the solution for years now… ‘new product is always crucial, a spokesman told me.
‘We’re going to be moving the Bentley story on in due course…’
Watch, he implored, this space. OK…
