Copyright 2005
2003 Bentley Arnage T :
From The Driver's Seat:
Before we get into precise driving sensations, it might be appropriate in this case to first say who Bentley identifies as the logical customer for the Arnage T. (There were already 50 U.S. takers on a waiting list as of early February.)
First, the average buyer has about $30 million in total assets. Of course, that's just an "average" customer for this car--and Bentley says there are more than 55,000 people worldwide who fit that profile. Also, such buyers aren't replacing an existing car; they're just adding another vehicle to a collection of perhaps six or seven automobiles.
The buyer is about 53, largely male, self-made and likes the primary attributes of Bentley--rarity, tradition, power and brashness.
And nowhere are such attributes more in evidence than with the Arnage T, the brashness coming first from under the hood with the enormous torque of the 6.75-liter V-8.
Not bad considering the engine design is more than 20 years old. But never fear, this is no ancient lump of iron, but an entirely reworked, all-aluminum motor that is so smooth in its power delivery, the only logical reaction to planting your right foot is awe.
That's because peak torque arrives quickly, at 3,250 rpm, and the squirt from a standing stop to that rpm comes on with great urgency because the newest Bentley uses twin turbochargers that spool up very rapidly. They deliver not only more overall power than the Arnage Red Label, a softer riding stable mate, but much quicker response. Aurally, when you stomp on the gas, you, at first, hear something like the rumble of approaching thunder, a deep-earth vibration that gives way to a high-pitched whir of motor and turbo.
Mid-range power is especially satisfying. Say the car is trolling along at 60mph when you come up behind a slower moving truck. Give the Arnage T some gas, swing out to pass, and in an instant, it will charge forward in a fluid surge, hitting 90mph in seconds.
The only negative (if you can call it that) to this endless torque is that using it becomes somewhat addictive.
Throttle response is also quite smooth, thanks to all-new, drive-by-wire technology that eliminates any need for cables from gas pedal to engine, and replaces such mechanical linkages with electronics. Also recalibrated is the GM-derived (yes, that GM) four-speed automatic (there is no manual model) transmission that offers very soft shifts, which makes for no clunks or hunting for gears. Why a four-speed and not a five- or six-speed? Again, the torque. There's so much of it, you don't need a lot of little gears to get up to speed and, in fact, the car is only above idling at a steady state of 60mph, pulling just 1,600 rpm in top gear.
Besides sheer juice, the Arnage T also delivers surprisingly spirited handling. We've pushed other Bentleys before, and it's been like herding elephants around a horse-racing track--not a comforting sensation. But this car will take long or tight turns with shocking ease. That's due to a chassis that's been stiffened by more than half over the Arnage Red Label (the Arnage T, by the way, wears a black badge, which, historically, has stood for the most earnestly sporting division of Bentley), wider tires, stiffer springs and an anti-roll bar in the aft of the car. Plus, there's Bentley's added anti-skid technology, so you can push the car very hard and it will correct over-aggressive inputs seamlessly. (We brought the car to a skid-pad just to be sure of the directional stability controls, and there's absolutely no feedback, auditory or otherwise, to tell you the system is at work, it just preempts spins and skids, and lets you keep driving).
If we have any criticism at all of the Arnage T as a driver's car, it's that the steering is a bit too light at slow speeds, and you only really feel the road above 50mph. Interestingly, the faster you go (we clipped along at 110mph at one point, just for scientific purposes mind you), the more the steering wakes up and the more stable the car becomes.
There is more to a Bentley than just driving it, however. There's the hermetic quality to the cabin to consider. And although there's no such thing as a stock Arnage T, or a stock Bentley of any sort, the dominant theme of this car is a fairly sporty, bold style dominated by the cross-diamond quilt of the leather seats and further emphasized in the knurled backing to the chrome door levers and pull-on chrome air vents. The thick glass, the huge swathes of turned aluminum chrome, and the near absence of plastic anywhere all imparts the sense of total privacy from the outside world.
And there's also the sheer size of the thing. This cockpit is spacious, even downright massive, with both length and girth, so four passengers sit at the corners of the car and even larger people never feel like their crowding each other.
Not everything is dead perfect, of course. The embroidered winged Flying B logos on the seats seem a little downscale to us (but if you don't like them, you don't have to get them), and the buttons for the climate controls are not only plastic, but come from a BMW 7-Series because part of the deal to split Bentley and Rolls included sharing of some parts. Also, the sun visors tilt down to block sunlight from the front, but don't swing to the side. That may have been excusable in the 1920s, but times have changed. And, yes, there are cupholders, but the ones in the back may be just big enough to hold an espresso to go, and that's about it.
Otherwise, riding aft is just like riding fore--comfortable but not seasick-making. You can feel the road here, in other words. If you don't want to, then you shouldn't be in a Bentley in the first place, and least of all in this Bentley.
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