Looking for advice and feedback.

Ive long been a fan of Bentley and have LUSTED after a pre-facelift Arnage. Would love a LeMans series car. As a pretty handy DIY guy and with friends that own specialist repair shops, Im sure we could keep the thing on the road.

Lets say theres a budget of $40-50K for such a purchase. This opens up the option for a Continental Gt now. These would be newer, likely to have more recent service and parts would be easier to source. The existence of the 2010 Supersports model with the Veyron seats REALLY interests me but for the asking price, we're dipping into a cross-shopping dilemma with other brands and we'll keep this conversation for a base model GT (maybe one with a Mulliner upgrade?)

1. Which would be "more" reliable?
2. Which would be more enjoyable to experience? Classic old school sedan or the more modern, twin turbo, coupe?
3. Im 6'6", 235lbs. I have two boys (ages 9 and 7). The Arnage seems to be the logical choice here but how useful are the back seats in the GT? My boys can currently fit just fine in the back of my 2004 CL55.
4. Given that I have a powerful (upgraded) CL55, would I be disappointed buying a GT when I already have a comfy and fast coupe?

Looking forward to this conversation

 

The CL is nice. I've been looking to find a little bit newer CL (around 2010-ish) with the 4MATIC as my daily driver, but they are very hard to come by here in Sweden. So I purchased the Mercedes X-Class truck instead.

I don't have kids yet, but I can't imagine that many people (young or old) will fit comfortably in a GT back seat. I am 6'3" and when I have the driver's seat where I am most comfortable (I could probably even have it a little further back, to be honest), it is less than 4 inches of space to the back seat.

I'll attach some mobile pics.

 

Thanks for the pics!! Yeah that doesnt look very roomy back there.

I have a couple dedicated two seaters that I can only take one boy at a time in so it wouldnt be the end of the world I suppose.

I wouldnt be able to drive either car to work (Im not in an office environment and dont want the co-workers to get the wrong impression) so it would be a car that I'd drive to lunch/dinner with my wife, or in the case of the sedan, take weekend drives with the entire family.

If the Arnage is that much easier to keep on the road, it would likely be the no brainer. BUT.... is it?

 

I don't know much about the Arnage, but surely someone here will be more qualified to answer your questions regarding that model and comparing it with the GT, etc.

My sister and her family, with two boys aged 9 and 12, will be visiting tomorrow for their last week of summer vacation. Next week I will take a ride with the boys, put the 9-year old in the passenger rear and the 12-year old in the front (with his seat a little bit further up front than mine), and let you know how that went.

 

Can't weigh in on the Arnage but the rear seats in the GT are little more than an upholstered package shelf. May be OK for small children but children don't remain small for very long!

 

I'm 6'2" and can carry young children and short adults for short trips no problem, and that's in a GT Convertible. Just requires front seats to be adjusted a bit forwards. It's definitely not going to be worst than the CL.

 

Not sure if you made your purchase but I have owned both. Can give you all the answers. I typed out a huge response but the site decided to reload the page and I lost it all.


pm we if you want to chat we can do a call.

 

@Mr8888 ,
BTDT, next time it happens, scroll down to the box as if you were going to start over, BUT, click on the "Restore Auto-Saved Content" tab to reload your previously typed text.

Johnny

 

Thanks johnny didnt even see that

 

I noted your location so I want to add my opinion. I'm in Chevy Chase and one of the main problems with ownership here is the lack of service options outside of the dealer.
Second the availability of parts is an issue, since Bentley seems to be limiting access to independent suppliers for some of the parts. That makes you and an independent
dependent upon the dealer with truly obscene pricing even to the independents.

The local dealer here in the metro DC area is in Virginia. It is painful to deal with them. There are three independents here, one very sketchy on pricing, the other won't allow
me to supply my own parts, and the third near Olney, MD is honest but not as experienced with things like the convertible top and more exotic repairs. I believe there is an
independent north of Baltimore, but that's way too far for me.

Finally, I'm only 5'6" and no teenager will fit in the back seat. My old 911 was better in that regard to give you some perspective.

If you want to see more of negativism on the car, see elsewhere on this forum for the thread about reliability.

I'd be delighted to know if you've got an independent you trust for these cars in Charm City.