New cars: 2012 Bentley Continental GT

Automobile

The new Continental GT may be sleek and sporty, but please don’t call it a sports car. “This is a grand touring coupe, and what a grand thing it is.” As befits its Bentley pedigree, this completely refreshed, second-generation superluxury coupe offers “sumptuous” creature comforts including sculpted seats and an interior that is “more painstakingly cloaked in exquisitely stitched leather” than ever before.

Car and Driver

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There’s plenty of power, too. While the GT remains one of the heaviest cars on the road, its twin-turbo 12-cylinder engine delivers almost more horses than seem necessary. Throw it into some turns and you’ll also notice “evidence of endless tweaking”: Since there’s a “grabby spot” in the brakes when you need only a bit of slowing, Bentley has made sure the transmission can “plunge two gears in an instant,” making downshifting a pleasure.

AutoWeek

If “your pockets are deep enough” and “your tastes lean toward big, heavy, superfast cars with undeniable presence,” the Continental GT is your kind of car. The first GT, in 2003, put Bentley “back at the tip of the luxury-brand spear.” This edition is even better.