Bentley Arnage : FINAL DESTINATION

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Bentley's Arnage Final Series represents the end of an bygone era. Experience it while you can, if you can. Jonathan Crouch reports

And so it ends here. When Bentley was surrendered into the hands of Volkswagen, the Germans set about creating a modern era model, the Continetal GT, based on a Volkswagen Phaeton platform. With the purchase of the company, they reluctantly inherited Bentley's final really British car, the Arnage, a high-end luxury saloon with much of its life yet to run. Now, that life is over and just 150 `Final Series' models remain.

All are based on the most expensive, most powerful Arnage T, with its 500bhp V8 engine and 1000Nm of torque marshalled through a 6-speed ZF automatic transmission. When you learn that this car retails for £195,000 with all the `Final Series' model enhancements, then you'll be clear that only millionaires need apply. It would take more space than we have here to run through all this model's little tweaks but the highlights include 20-inch five-spoke alloy wheels, a retractable `Flying B' bonnet mascot, body coloured headlamp bezels, dark tinting for the upper and lower grilles, lower front wing air vents, a Bentley `Jewel' fuel filler cap, twin exhaust tail pipes and a `FINAL SERIES' badge on front wings Inside, you'll find a large display audio head unit with a Secure Digital (SD) memory card slot, plus a range of more tactile features. There are `FINAL SERIES' treadplates on the front doors, drilled alloy brake and accelerator pedals and waistrails with an inset chrome strip including recessed Bentley marque badges. So that you can really impress friends or `clients', you also get a FINAL SERIES stainless steel flask with shot glasses, two veneer-trimmed picnic tables to rest them on, removable rear cup holders for the rear centre armrest and a hide-trimmed rear cocktail cabinet. It must be a bit galling though, to spend this much on a car and have to pay extra for an interface to take your ipod.

"For potential owners of this car, it's not how fast you get there but how you get there that counts. â€¦"

Otherwise, it's the classic Arnage package, featuring an engine that essentially dates back to 1959, though of course it's come quite some way from the original 6.25-litre unit that struggled to crack 200bhp. It was the introduction of turbocharging in the early 1980s that really started cranking horsepower figures skywards and the latest generation turbo system sees the twin blowers operating with greater efficiency at low engine speeds, reaching maximum turbine speed in half the time of their predecessors. The camshafts and valve timing system has also been improved in recent years. It's easy to take progress for granted but some perspective is granted by the fact that this modern Arnage not only produces 300bhp more than its 1959 predecessor but only consumes 60 per cent as much fuel and, thanks to improved fuel injection and exhaust controls, its emissions output is an astonishing 99 per cent lower than Bentley's first V8. On the move, three transmission modes (Drive, Sport and Semi-Automatic) allow the driver to take full advantage of the silky smooth ZF automatic `box. The semi auto mode works by allowing the driver to prod the lever backwards and forwards to select gears sequentially for ultimate control. Where previous Arnage models featured engine and transmissions that were governed by separate electronic control systems, this generation features a much smarter Bosch unit. Going the other way are the sport modes for the suspension and gearbox which can now be activated independently of the other for better control. The traction control and ESP stability control systems have also been recalibrated in recent times to restore full power earlier after an intervention. With the premium German manufacturers now routinely offering 550 and even 600bhp saloons, this Arnage's 500bhp output might not be considered to be enough by some, especially when Bentley's own far cheaper Continental Flying Spur can produce up to 600bhp. But figures are, well, just figures. For potential owners of this car, it's not how fast you get there but how you get there that counts. After all, nothing quite prepares you for the moment you drop behind the wheel of this car. Virtually everything is extravagantly, voluptuously over-engineered. The turned aluminium fascia and door inserts of the test car were beautifully finished, as was the pleated hidework on the doors and seats. You find yourself dipping switches and twisting exquisitely knurled knobs just to feel the sheer oily quality of their motion. Such is the overwhelming sense of happy surprise and delight that merely operating the big Bentley becomes a pleasure in itself. Driving it is another story. The breathy sigh of the turbochargers and the muted howl of the engine are a prelude to the most astonishing surge of power, the prow rising slightly like a Riva speedboat as the scenery explodes through the windscreen, the behemoth tyres creating a muted thump as they traverse surface imperfections. The power feels more relentless, if slightly less explosive than of old, with a broader, flatter serving of that prodigious torque. The steering at first feels disconcertingly light, but work with it and you'll find that turn in is surprisingly sharp. The superb Electronic Stability Programme helps prevent 2,655kg of metal, leather, wood and fluids getting away from underneath you. As great as the Continental GT and Flying Spur models are, you still need to drive an Arnage to get the fully-proofed Bentley experience. And there's not much time left to do it.

Facts At A Glance
CAR: Bentley Arnage Final Series
PRICE: £195,000 - on the road
INSURANCE GROUP: 20
PERFORMANCE: Max Speed 179mph / 0-60mph 5.2s
FUEL CONSUMPTION: (urban) 9.8mpg / (extra urban) 20.1mpg / (combined) 14.5mpg
STANDARD SAFETY FEATURES: Twin front, curtain and side airbags / ABS / stability control
WILL IT FIT IN YOUR GARAGE?: Length/Width/Height mm 5400/2125/1515