1995 Bentley Continental R 6.8 V8 Turbo Review and Performance Comparison

Bentley Continental Performance Review.

Introduction:

The 1995 Bentley Continental R 6.8 V8 Turbo is a powered by a Petrol V 8. This variant of the Bentley Continental R 6.8 V8 Turbo is the 4 speed / Auto version and was first brought out around 1995. This was at around the same time as the introduction of the 1996 Ferrari F50 GT1 4.7l V12 and the 1995 McLaren F1 LM 6.1 V12.

This particular Bentley Continental has a 6750cc Turbo Petrol powerplant driven by the Bentley Rear Wheel Drive system.

Alternative Petrol V 8's include the 2023 Dodge Challenger SRT Demon 170

The Continental shares its Petrol V 8 engine configuration with the likes of the 2023 Dodge Challenger SRT Demon 170 and the 2023 Ferrari SF 90 XX Spider 4.0 V8 Turbo.If you're looking for other similar performing cars which share the Continental's Rear Wheel Drive, Coupe combination then how about the 1985 Alfa-Romeo Spider Veloce or the earlier 1982 Fiat X1/9 1.5 8V.

Power and Weight:

Weighing in at 2402 kgs (5295 lbs) places the Bentley Continental R 6.8 V8 Turbo in a similar weight category as the 2024 Mercedes GT GT 63 S E Performance and the excellent 2024 Mercedes E Class E53 Hybrid 4MATIC+, give or take 50kg.

The Bentley Continental shares the same bhp with the 2024 Toyota Supra GR Lightweight EVO (382 bhp)

In terms of pure power the 6750cc 16 valve, V 8 engine produces around 385 bhp (287 kW) @ 4000 rpm which is comparable to the 2024 Toyota Supra GR Lightweight EVO (382 bhp) and also the 2024 Toyota Land Cruiser 300 GR Sport (409 bhp).

The Turbo V 8 throws out 553 lb-ft (749.7 Nm) @ 2000 rpm placing it with cars of similar torque performance figures such as the 3996 Bentley Continental GT 4.0 V8 Turbo Convertible (568 lb-ft) or the 2025 Maserati MCPURA 3.0 V6 Twin Turbo (538 lb-ft).

Power to Weight:

If you look at both power or torque of the 1995 Bentley Continental in comparison with its weight you get a much more accurate idea of its real world performance.

The 2013 Lexus RC 350 3.5 V6 (185.2 bhp per ton) has similar Bhp Per Ton stats as the Bentley Continental.

The Bentley Continental has a power to weight ratio of 160.2 bhp per ton. Bhp per ton figures of the 1995 Continental R 6.8 V8 Turbo means you're competing with the 2013 Lexus RC 350 3.5 V6 (185.2 bhp per ton) and the equally quick 2022 Mini Cooper Clubman John Cooper Works 2.0 Turbo ALL4 (185.2 bhp per ton).

Torque to Weight:

If you agree with the late great Carroll Shelby then arguably an even better indicator of potential performance is Torque!. However, torque isn't the whole story, you also need to compare weight as well for more real world comparisons such as torque per ton.

The Bentley Continental R 6.8 V8 Turbo generates around 230.2 lb-ft per ton. So if you're looking at what cars perform similarly either on the drag strip or at the traffic lights using torque to weight as a benchmark, then look no further than the 2018 Tesla Model 3 Long Range AWD Performance (255.0 lb-ft per ton) or the similarly performing 2014 Audi A6 RS6 Avant 4.0 Turbo (254.8 lb-ft per ton).

Acceleration:

The Bentley Continental R 6.8 V8 Turbo can accelerate 0–60mph in 6.10 secs or 0–100km/h (0–62mph) in 6.3 secs. Acceleration rivals to the Bentley Continental R 6.8 V8 Turbo include the 2017 Maserati Ghibli 3.0 V6 Diesel (6.10 secs) or the equally as fast to 60mph 2017 Land-Rover Velar 3.0 SDV6 300 (6.10 secs).

The V 8 engine of the Bentley Continental R 6.8 V8 Turbo ensures that, ‘on paper’ at least, accelerates slightly faster than the 2022 Mercedes EQE SUV 350+ (6.20 secs) and the 2019 Toyota Supra SZ-R 2.0 Turbo (6.20 secs).

Quarter Mile time is a close race between the Bentley Continental R 6.8 V8 Turbo and the Seat Ibiza Cupra 1.8 Turbo

On a longer format for acceleration comparisons the 1995 Bentley Continental can reach a quarter mile in an estimated 15.06 secs with a trap speed around 90.4 mph. Similar performances down the quarter mile drag strip can be found with the the Seat Ibiza Cupra 1.8 Turbo (15.07 seconds @ 90.4 mph) and a close race between the Volkswagen-VW Golf 2.8 VR6 (15.07 seconds @ 90.4 mph) too.

Top Speed:

Some modern performance cars are often artificially restricted particularly when it comes to max speed. 155 mph top speed restrictions are often used as part of the German 'Gentleman's Agreement' for example, so be cautious when using maximum speed figures. The 1995 version of the Bentley Continental R 6.8 V8 Turbo has a maximum speed of 151mph.

Top Speed of the 1995 Continental equals the Mini Cooper John Cooper Works GP 1.6 Turbo (150 mph)

If maxing out your car on the AutoBahn is your thing and you're wondering what has a similar top end performance to the 1995 Bentley Continental R 6.8 V8 Turbo then there's the slightly slower the Mini Cooper John Cooper Works GP 1.6 Turbo (150 mph) or how about the impressive Mitsubishi Lancer Evo VI GSR (150 mph).

— AutoSnout

Figures & Specs Summary:

Related Links:

• 1995 Continental Rivals List.
• 1995 Continental: Full Review and Comparisons.
• A Brief History of Bentley
• Compare the 1995 Bentley Continental