Driving a Bentley in Chicago (rentals, prices, eat)

[Drover]

Originally Posted by Ramo Nash

This thread confuses me... isn't the whole point of having a bentley to try to stick out???

Not necessarily. By and large, the Bentley line has pretty mild styling and doesn't really stand out all that much unless you look for the badging. This is particularly true for the Flying Spur and the Continental GT (pictured below) which certainly doesn't grab people's eyes like a Ferrari or a Lamborghini does.

The point of having a Flying Spur or a Continental GT in particular is to cruise comfortably, safely effortlessly and gracefully at any speed between 10 and 160mph. If I had the means I'd consider getting one as a road-tripping barge and not necessarily as a "showoff" car.

A note to mods: the picture below is lifted from Wikipedia which allows reprinting with attribution (picture attributed to Wikipedia contributer Brett Weinstein), so please don't spaz out and pull the picture down.

The current Bentley lineup from left to right: Flying Spur, Continental GT and Arnage.

[Steve-o]

(^)


zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz

[Ramo Nash]

Originally Posted by Steve-o

No. You dont drive a Bentley to stick out, they dont look phenomonal whatsoever. Theyre just for the ultra-rich crowd who want power and incredible craftmanship in a automobile. If you want to stick out, you buy a bright orange Lamborghini Murcielago or something.

Naw, I disagree. I think it's just just a variation in sticking out--it's a $$$ display just the same, but it says it in a different way. To me, it's a way of saying that you're ultra-rich, but also under the guise of pretending you don't care one way or the other. To people completely out of the know, a bentley isn't as eye-catching as a lambo, but if people know cars, it will stick out plenty.

[Drover]

Well maybe I have a jaded sense of what "ultra rich" is, because I don't really consider a $125,000 car to be a statement of "ultra rich." It's a car that says "richer than you" but it doesn't say to me "richer than God." A Bentley just isn't that big a deal around here.

[CarolinaBredChicagoan]

Originally Posted by Ramo Nash

Naw, I disagree. I think it's just just a variation in sticking out--it's a $$$ display just the same, but it says it in a different way. To me, it's a way of saying that you're ultra-rich, but also under the guise of pretending you don't care one way or the other. To people completely out of the know, a bentley isn't as eye-catching as a lambo, but if people know cars, it will stick out plenty.

I guess it's a way to stick out, but it's way less flashy.

It's Old Money vs nouveau riche. It's the Patek Phillippe vs Diamond Crusted Rolex. It's quality and prestige that doesn't scream from the rooftops. I mean heck. Bentley's used to be the cars you were driven in, not the cars you drove. (The Arnage, particularly, still is...) Something like the Continental GT shifted that.

[Lookout Kid]

Who knew there were so many car enthusiasts and gearheads on this site? I know very few in real life. It doesn't seem to be a big thing with most Chicagoans.

[Steve-o]

Originally Posted by Lookout Kid

Who knew there were so many car enthusiasts and gearheads on this site? I know very few in real life. It doesn't seem to be a big thing with most Chicagoans.

There are an infinite amount of gearheads in Chicagoland, evident by the millions of car clubs, cruise nights, car shows, etc.

[Lookout Kid]

Originally Posted by Steve-o

There are an infinite amount of gearheads in Chicagoland, evident by the millions of car clubs, cruise nights, car shows, etc.

Well, you would know!

[jimbo13]

i think sugarrrgurrrl is a donkey for even starting this thread.

[vandre]

Originally Posted by Drover

Not necessarily. By and large, the Bentley line has pretty mild styling and doesn't really stand out all that much unless you look for the badging. This is particularly true for the Flying Spur and the Continental GT (pictured below) which certainly doesn't grab people's eyes like a Ferrari or a Lamborghini does.

The point of having a Flying Spur or a Continental GT in particular is to cruise comfortably, safely effortlessly and gracefully at any speed between 10 and 160mph. If I had the means I'd consider getting one as a road-tripping barge and not necessarily as a "showoff" car.

A note to mods: the picture below is lifted from Wikipedia which allows reprinting with attribution (picture attributed to Wikipedia contributer Brett Weinstein), so please don't spaz out and pull the picture down.

The current Bentley lineup from left to right: Flying Spur, Continental GT and Arnage.

The Continental design lines looks like if Mercedes-Benz had a bastard child with a Jaguar (eeeek!!)

I also think that after a certain point, let's say 200k, it's more about people making a statement 'look! I have money burning in my pocket' rather than about driving a car with excellent craftsmanship, comfort and/or a powerful engine. I have driven a 01' Mercedes S500 (You can get those for less than 100k), and I don't think a 200k Bentley would be such a revelation compared to it.