2027 Bentley Supersports First Drive Review: The Lightweight Sports Car Bentley Should Have Created From the Start

      Byron Hurd

      Bentley's transformation for the track. The 2027 Supersports loses over 1,000 pounds, providing a lightweight and nimble driving experience with 657 horsepower.

      Complete engineering revamp. It boasts rear-wheel drive, large carbon-ceramic brakes, and enhanced steering systems for exceptional handling.

      Limited production. Only 500 units have been made, all sold out, with a price tag of $490,000.

      A blend of performance and luxury. It merges track capabilities with Bentley's signature opulence, heralding a new chapter for the brand.

      Bottom line: The 2027 Supersports from Bentley reshapes its performance reputation with a lightweight, track-focused coupe, though its exclusivity ensures that few will have the chance to enjoy it.

      AI assisted, editor reviewed

      What has nearly 700 horsepower, weighs just over two tons, and produces beautiful V8 sounds? I can think of two options. One is the Cadillac CT5-V Blackwing. The other? You’re looking at the 2027 Bentley Supersports.

      Bentley has ventured into this territory before, so a powerful yet nimble coupe from Crewe shouldn’t come as a shock. The name "Supersports" has a history that dates back to the 1920s, and you would need to look almost that far back to find a Bentley grand tourer that weighed less than two tons. For as long as I have followed performance car evaluations, weight has consistently been a noticeable problem with Bentley’s faster models. Remember, this is the brand known for the W12, and for over a century, it has embraced a level of excess matched only by Maybach and Rolls-Royce.

      This always leaves me with a persistent question: How enjoyable can a coupe be when it weighs as much as a Chevy Suburban? We’ve observed attempts to address this with the Mulliner and GT Speed models, which have pushed the boundaries of power while providing some acknowledgment of weight reduction. Certainly, there are large, heavy vehicles that perform impressive feats, but we're discussing luxury touring cars, not a TRX imitation.

      So, when Bentley’s communications head, Mike Sayer, sat down with me in Monterey and remarked, “This is the car that the GT3-R should have been,” it certainly captured my attention.

      What does that mean, specifically? Like the Supersports, the GT3-R was a limited-run homage to Bentley’s racing legacy, but unlike this latest iteration, the 2015 Continental GT3-R still leaned heavily toward being a road car. It maintained standard all-wheel drive and, despite the engineers' best efforts, still weighed nearly 5,000 pounds—a figure that makes even a Hellcat seem lightweight.

      Bentley’s more-is-more philosophy regarding speed has indeed led to some outrageously fast cars, but they were only suited for a few laps on a racetrack before everything—particularly the brakes—needed a break. With the Supersports, Bentley has finally rewritten that narrative. In what Sayer described as a true “skunkworks” project, the Continental’s engineers removed all the heavy components from the coupe and refined the 4.0-liter V8. It now generates 657 horsepower and 590 lb-ft of torque delivered solely to the rear wheels.

      With the hybrid system and front drive components removed, Bentley sought to replace every feasible body part. Ultimately, the Supersports is over 1,000 pounds lighter than the Continental GT Speed. It also features virtually all of that car’s performance enhancements plus some extras. The substantial brakes grip 17.3-inch carbon-ceramic rotors at the front and 16.1-inch rotors at the rear. Bentley claims this is the largest brake system in the industry. It also incorporates the GT Speed’s rear-axle steering and electronic anti-roll system. Who needs sway bars?

      While the Supersports may not be the most luxurious Continental, it still embodies the Bentley essence. The company reports the Supersport’s maximum lateral acceleration at 1.3G on optional Pirelli Trofeo RS tires, though buyers have the choice of the more standard Pirelli P-Zero tires. While still a summer tire, the P-Zero will wear better and provide a more comfortable ride than the Trofeo.

      Combine all of this, and Bentley claims you have the company’s first truly track-capable vehicle. To demonstrate this, they invited me to Laguna Seca to take a few laps.

      When engineers are given the freedom to be this creative with a platform, the result can be a bit wild—that often happens when those in the "asylum" are allowed to manage it. Given how drastically this vehicle diverges from the standard Continental, Bentley would have been excused for handing us the keys to something that felt a bit unhinged. However, true to Bentley’s philosophy of “effortless progress,” the