Motor Trend - First Test: 2007 Bentley Arnage T

Merc1 · 06-29-2007, 03:00 AM

Not much about the 2007 Bentley Arnage T aristo-sedan makes sense. Not the fuel efficiency-just 11 mpg in the city. Not the curb weight, which checks in at a titanic 5715 pounds even before you've filled the trunk with polo mallets and cucumber sandwiches. And certainly not the price: $271,696, including $2090 worth of rear-seat picnic tables and $240 worth of umbrellas but not a three-bedroom Tudor in which to park them.

The Arnage T doesn't care. It's big, indulgent, and expensive on purpose. Let other car buyers fret over trifling concerns like miles per gallon, monthly payments, and high cholesterol. The Bentley is the four-wheeled equivalent of a dark, leathery steakhouse where at lunchtime you put away a couple martinis, a New York strip, a double-wide slice of cheesecake, and a massive Montecristo before heading back to your office to take a nap. Anachronistic? Hey, the Arnage T is proud of it. What's more, it's one of the last of a dying breed: the Mogul's Car, a sprawling, profligate road yacht that says "big-shot Hollywood producer" like a monogrammed bungalow.

The basics of the Arnage T date back to somewhere around the Cretaceous period (some say the engine wasn't actually designed but instead bubbled out of a now-dormant volcano somewhere on the British Isles). Yet under the guidance of parent company Volkswagen (owner of Bentley since 1998), the Arnage has benefited from a steady conditioning regimen. For 2007, the handbuilt, 6.8-liter V-8 sports two new low-inertia Mitsubishi turbochargers, a revised cam, and a new roller tappet system that, in the sporty T, boost horsepower by 50 ponies (to 500 at 4200 rpm) and torque by 93 pound-feet, to 738 at 3200 rpm. (Two other Arnage models, the R and the long-wheelbase RL, deliver 450 horsepower and 645 pound-feet.) In addition to more muscle than the 2006 model, fuel economy has improved from horrendous (10/14 city/highway mpg) to heinous (11/16 mpg).

Most significant for 2007 is the arrival of a new ZF six-speed auto; it offers three modes (Drive, Sport, and Semi-Automatic) and a sequential-manual shift gate. In addition to the two additional cogs (the 2006 Arnage T brandished a four-speed auto from GM), the Bentley also boasts a new Bosch management system that integrates control of the engine and transmission into a single computer, improving shift responsiveness and smoothness. Other enhancements include revised traction control and electronic stability systems, standard tire-pressure monitoring, minor exterior-trim changes, anda smattering of interior tweaks - including a new thin-film (TFT) driver-info display.

"Like the twelve-inch guns firing on a Dreadnought-class British battleship." That's how editor-in-chief MacKenzie describes the thunder and fury that erupt when you crack wide the throttle on the big twin-turbo V-8. Nearly three tons of steel, glass, and umbrellas? You'd never know it: The Arnage T blasts to 60 mph in just 5.4 seconds. (It'd probably go even faster, but the rearend lacks a limited-slip. You'll know a hard-driven Arnage T was in the area from the single black stripe left by that one tortured rear tire.) The engine makes torque like "The View" produces annoyance, and the flow seems limitless. Top speed is a claimed 179 mph.

The ride is on the harsh side for an aristo-sedan (the driver has a choice of standard or sport settings for the dampers), though the payoff is a respectable 0.83 g of maximum grip. The stability-control system is light-handed; open the torque-gates mid-corner, and the tail rotates a few helpful degrees before the electronics curtail the surge. The big disc brakes are potent: Stops from 60 mph take just 118 feet. On the other hand, who would drive the Arnage in such a lewd manner? Take a turn too briskly, brake too abruptly, and you'll quickly clear those handsome rear picnic trays of all food and drink. You'll have poupon on the carpet.

Full Article:

2007 Bentley Arnage T - First Test - Motor Trend

I still love this old girl.

M

06-29-2007, 03:00 AM	#1 (permalink)
Merc1 Contributor Join Date: Sep 2005 Location: Aurora IL USA Posts: 4,955 Thanks: 363 Thanked 672 Times in 346 Posts	Motor Trend - First Test: 2007 Bentley Arnage T Not much about the 2007 Bentley Arnage T aristo-sedan makes sense. Not the fuel efficiency-just 11 mpg in the city. Not the curb weight, which checks in at a titanic 5715 pounds even before you've filled the trunk with polo mallets and cucumber sandwiches. And certainly not the price: $271,696, including $2090 worth of rear-seat picnic tables and $240 worth of umbrellas but not a three-bedroom Tudor in which to park them. The Arnage T doesn't care. It's big, indulgent, and expensive on purpose. Let other car buyers fret over trifling concerns like miles per gallon, monthly payments, and high cholesterol. The Bentley is the four-wheeled equivalent of a dark, leathery steakhouse where at lunchtime you put away a couple martinis, a New York strip, a double-wide slice of cheesecake, and a massive Montecristo before heading back to your office to take a nap. Anachronistic? Hey, the Arnage T is proud of it. What's more, it's one of the last of a dying breed: the Mogul's Car, a sprawling, profligate road yacht that says "big-shot Hollywood producer" like a monogrammed bungalow. The basics of the Arnage T date back to somewhere around the Cretaceous period (some say the engine wasn't actually designed but instead bubbled out of a now-dormant volcano somewhere on the British Isles). Yet under the guidance of parent company Volkswagen (owner of Bentley since 1998), the Arnage has benefited from a steady conditioning regimen. For 2007, the handbuilt, 6.8-liter V-8 sports two new low-inertia Mitsubishi turbochargers, a revised cam, and a new roller tappet system that, in the sporty T, boost horsepower by 50 ponies (to 500 at 4200 rpm) and torque by 93 pound-feet, to 738 at 3200 rpm. (Two other Arnage models, the R and the long-wheelbase RL, deliver 450 horsepower and 645 pound-feet.) In addition to more muscle than the 2006 model, fuel economy has improved from horrendous (10/14 city/highway mpg) to heinous (11/16 mpg). Most significant for 2007 is the arrival of a new ZF six-speed auto; it offers three modes (Drive, Sport, and Semi-Automatic) and a sequential-manual shift gate. In addition to the two additional cogs (the 2006 Arnage T brandished a four-speed auto from GM), the Bentley also boasts a new Bosch management system that integrates control of the engine and transmission into a single computer, improving shift responsiveness and smoothness. Other enhancements include revised traction control and electronic stability systems, standard tire-pressure monitoring, minor exterior-trim changes, anda smattering of interior tweaks - including a new thin-film (TFT) driver-info display. "Like the twelve-inch guns firing on a Dreadnought-class British battleship." That's how editor-in-chief MacKenzie describes the thunder and fury that erupt when you crack wide the throttle on the big twin-turbo V-8. Nearly three tons of steel, glass, and umbrellas? You'd never know it: The Arnage T blasts to 60 mph in just 5.4 seconds. (It'd probably go even faster, but the rearend lacks a limited-slip. You'll know a hard-driven Arnage T was in the area from the single black stripe left by that one tortured rear tire.) The engine makes torque like "The View" produces annoyance, and the flow seems limitless. Top speed is a claimed 179 mph. The ride is on the harsh side for an aristo-sedan (the driver has a choice of standard or sport settings for the dampers), though the payoff is a respectable 0.83 g of maximum grip. The stability-control system is light-handed; open the torque-gates mid-corner, and the tail rotates a few helpful degrees before the electronics curtail the surge. The big disc brakes are potent: Stops from 60 mph take just 118 feet. On the other hand, who would drive the Arnage in such a lewd manner? Take a turn too briskly, brake too abruptly, and you'll quickly clear those handsome rear picnic trays of all food and drink. You'll have poupon on the carpet. Full Article: 2007 Bentley Arnage T - First Test - Motor Trend I still love this old girl. M

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