Skip advert
Advertisement

Bentley Azure T review

Old-school Bentley gets makeover and power hike

Evo rating
RRP
from £245,000
  • There's nothing else like it
  • Cheaper Conti GTC is a much better drive

There was no missing this Bentley when it was at Evo Towers. For a start, you don’t park an Azure – it’s far too grand for that. Instead you simply place it outside your destination and abandon ship, leaving everyone else to squeeze in around you.

Lord knows how many cows and trees have to be sacrificed in order for each Azure to exist, but the result is a car that’s simply like no other. The revised cabin of the ‘T’ gets a number of subtle revisions, plus the new option of a ‘Naim for Bentley’ ten-speaker audio system, while outside you’ll now find 20in ‘Bright Finish’ alloy wheels, dark-tint grilles and twin exhaust pipes. Most importantly, below decks the twin-turbo 6.75-litre V8 gets a tweak that results in full-fat outputs of 500bhp and 738lb ft.

Advertisement - Article continues below

This is power on an epic scale. The 2.6-ton Azure T takes on a deranged personality when you gun it, with 100mph being passed in just 12.1sec and the laws of physics not taking hold until 179mph. The new six-speed ZF gearbox is a huge improvement on the old five-speed unit too, locking on to gears more quickly and offering smoother, faster changes.

So it’s a shame that it’s so difficult to get to grips with the actual act of driving the Azure, the amount of lag between issuing a command and the car carrying it out giving you the impression that you are controlling it remotely. Driving in stop-go traffic isn’t as easy as it should be, nor is pressing on, as there’s always a pause between you squeezing the accelerator and the power arriving at the wheels.

All of which means that the Azure remains an astonishing car, but not one that’s particularly rewarding to drive. Shame.

Find used Bentley Azure's for sale on the Classic and Performance Car site here.

Specifications

EngineV8, 6761cc, twin-turbo
Max power500bhp @ 4200rpm
Max torque738lb ft @ 3200rpm
0-605.2sec (claimed)
Top speed179mph (claimed)
Skip advert
Advertisement
Skip advert
Advertisement

Most Popular

Used Volkswagen Golf R (Mk7, 2014-2020) review – the original hyper hatch now cheaper than any new car on sale today
Volkswagen Golf R (Mk7) front
In-depth reviews

Used Volkswagen Golf R (Mk7, 2014-2020) review – the original hyper hatch now cheaper than any new car on sale today

We were always huge fans of the Mk7 VW Golf R. That its successor has never quite lived up to its high standards has only underlined how good it was
1 May 2025
GMA T.50 v McLaren F1 – has the best car in the world been dethroned by its successor?
GMA T.50 v McLaren F1 – front
Group tests

GMA T.50 v McLaren F1 – has the best car in the world been dethroned by its successor?

We test Gordon Murray's hypercar dynasty – the McLaren F1 and the GMA T.50 – head to head to see which comes out on top as the ultimate exotic
3 May 2025
Best Italian cars – Italy's greats from Alfa to Zonda
Best Italian cars
Best cars

Best Italian cars – Italy's greats from Alfa to Zonda

It’s Italian cars that put journalists at the most risk of summoning nauseating hyperbole and time-worn cliches, for good reason. These are the best
2 May 2025