Fastest ever Bentley Conti GT revealed

Clearly, 204mph isn't nearly fast enough. Probably. Because today, we can reveal the fastest production Bentley in history: the 205mph Bentley Continental GT Speed.

That's right, an entire mile-per-hour quicker than the Supersports Coupe.

Bentley has aimed the new GT Speed at enthusiasts who enjoy outright speed, and as such, has uprated the 6.0-litre twin-turbo W12 engine from the normal W12 GT's 567bhp to 616bhp and a simply prodigious 590lb ft of torque. This equates to a 0-60mph time of four seconds dead, shaving a highly necessary 0.4 seconds off its lesser's time. For reference, the Continental Supersports produces 621bhp and shaves that 0-60mph time down even more to 3.7 seconds.

Gallery: the new Bentley Continental GT Speed

The new GT Speed uses the ZF eight-speed auto gearbox - which contributes to an overall 12 per cent improvement in economy and CO2 - and features uprated steering and suspension, a lowered right height and 21in ‘Speed' wheels available in two finishes. Naturally, it gets permanent all-wheel-drive with a Torsen differential to harness those horses, too.

Inside the hand-crafted cabin, the GT Speed features the ‘Mulliner Driving Specification' as standard, and external pointers include a dark-tinted matrix front grille, lower air intakes and a "rifled" finish to the exhaust pipes.

Says Wolfgang Dürheimer, Bentley chief: "The new GT Speed with its harder-edged, sportier character reaffirms this pinnacle positioning and continues to broaden the worldwide appeal of the Continental Coupe."

It'll make its debut at the Goodwood Festival of Speed next month, where Juha Kankunnen, Guy Smith and Derek Bell will pilot a pre-production version up the hill. Quite quickly, probably.