2000 Bentley Continental T

The package all this hardware comes in ain't too shabby either. Believe it or not, the DB7 began life as the sports car design rejected by Jaguar prior to styling the XK8. But reject is hardly the proper term. If you think it's faint-me-dead-away beautiful in the photos, you should see it in metal. The shapes are aggressively feline, which compliment that hungry mouth and those steely-eyed headlamps. Other than a rear bumper that juts a bit too far, it's just about perfect.

The cabin resembles the drawing room at a British military club with sumptuous leather, polished wood, soft suede, plus complete instrumentation that's easy to view. And every stitch of it is hand-crafted. The seats cradle, the smells are rich, and everything you care about is power-operated. Ergonomics are not perfect. And there are a few questionable equipment choices (such as what appears to be a Mazda parts-bin ashtray!), along with a gear shift knob that always seems to be in the way of the stereo controls.

You know to expect a polished performance from the moment this superb British blown-six fires up. It speaks in hushed tones, and the supercharger is silent at idle. Acceleration is deceptive; the blower begins adding horsepower at little more than idle, and you can feel the fatness of the torque curve beginning at 2500 rpm and pulling strongly for another 3000 more.

With only 3.2 liters pushing some 3800 pounds, the DB7 is no dragster. But it's not intended to be, although its 0-60 mph in 5.7 seconds would chase away many of the '60's most vaunted musclecars. The DB7 seems really to come into its own at about 110 mph in 5th. Sweet. She's a handler too; not in the Porsche sense, but perfect for fast sweepers and Alpine switchbacks, always delivering a luxurious and well-controlled ride.

If you want pure torque, buy the Viper-or the Ford Super Duty, for that matter. Or wait for the upcoming Jaguar XKR, which is an XK8 packing the XJR's supercharged V-8 heart. But if you want, and can afford the $130,000 pricetag for six perfectly balanced cylinders worth of God-Save-The-Queen power, style, craftsmanship, and exclusivity, consider the Aston Martin DB7; an automobile anyone would likely find satisfying for many years to come.
-Matt Stone

Bentley Continental T
650 Lb/Ft @ 2200 Rpm
THE Torque Of The Town
Presenting the Torque Monster, Mr. Olympia, wearing a tuxedo and black sunglasses: the Bentley Continental T. Most people see a Bentley and think Rolls-Royce. It's an understandable mistake, considering the two marques' commingled histories. But with a true sporting background dating from the late '20s when Bentleys five times won a then-little-known race in Le Mans, France, the bonny Bentleys of today evoke the spirit and hand-craftsmanship of the past with even more performance to send your Bowler to the back seat, posthaste.

What propels this huge touring coupe is what motivated this entire story-torque, and more of it than you can find anywhere on earth in any production car, or truck, thank you. All Bentley engine output was, until recently, quoted only as "appropriate" or "sufficient" for the needs of the vehicle. Now, the T's turbocharged 6.75-liter OHV Rolls-Royce-designed V-8 is rated at 650 pound-feet of torque at a mere 2200 rpm. We couldn't believe it, either, until we drove the car. Another surprising fact: the 5400-pound Bentley is actually rated by the EPA as a "subcompact," due to its scant interrior volume.