Skip advert
Advertisement

Bentley Azure T review

Old-school Bentley gets makeover and power hike

Evo rating
Price
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

The new Mercedes-AMG G63 has arrived, and it still has a V8
Mercedes-AMG G63
News

The new Mercedes-AMG G63 has arrived, and it still has a V8

Some of Affalterbach’s range-toppers are swapping eight cylinders for four, but the AMG G-class retains its V8 for 2024
26 Mar 2024
The new Toyota GR Yaris costs £44,250 – too much for a hot supermini?
Toyota GR Yaris Gen 2 – front
News

The new Toyota GR Yaris costs £44,250 – too much for a hot supermini?

Our early impressions of the Gen 2 GR Yaris suggest that it’s an improvement in every area that counts, but can it be worth £18k more than an i20 N?
27 Mar 2024
Land Rover Defender OCTA: twin-turbo V8 and McLaren-style suspension tech for hot off-roader
Land Rover Defender OCTA – front
News

Land Rover Defender OCTA: twin-turbo V8 and McLaren-style suspension tech for hot off-roader

The OCTA promises to be the fastest, toughest and most capable Defender yet when it launches later this year
26 Mar 2024