Highlights - Marbella Luxury Real Estate Magazine 2019

Highlights
Roads less travelled & the
BENTLEY Continental GT
By Sam Hexter-Andrews
Photography by Annie Rose. Vehicle courtesy of C. de Salamanca
There are many locations
throughout the world that
boast stirring vistas and unique
landscapes; but perhaps none so
beautiful as the mountain passes that vein out
from the heart of Marbella. Once you decide
to head north, leaving the bustling cityscape
and crystal coastline, Andalusia will reward
you with some of the most glorious, smooth,
serpentine tarmac that Europe has to offer.
And so what better place than the mountains
of Sierra de las Nieves, to get a full flavour of
Bentley’s new luxury grand tourer, the 2019
Continental GT.
Visually, the new
Continental GT is a truly
stunning piece of design that
exhibits clean, sweeping
superformed lines and a wide,
low body, evoking a sense
of speed and presence, even
when completely stationary.
This sleek styling amplifies
inside the coachwork, with the
cabin offering genuine luxury
real estate for its occupants.
Every leather-wrapped panel
is hand stitched, as is the
steering wheel, quilted leather on the seats and
the Bentley emblem delicately embroidered
into the headrest. The interior build quality is
second to none. The interior on our car was
finished in a deep Piano Black with chrome
accents, a true statement of modernism.
There’s even an option to hide the sat-nav
and infotainment system in favour of classic
chronograph dials and a compass, paying
homage to grand tourers of old.
Each piece of switch-gear is finished like
exquisite jewellery. Its headlights resemble
fine-crystal whiskey tumblers rather than
anything that should ever be found on a
motor vehicle. Every surface exhibits a superior
quality finish to see and touch. Even the inside
of the door handles, an area you’ll never lay
eyes on, is finished with a tactile machined
texture. It’s in these seemingly minuscule
details that Bentley truly outclasses many
other luxury marques in today’s market.
When the twin-turbocharged, 6-litre W12
roars to life for the first time, we’re greeted by
a bellowing soundtrack that would be chasing
us up the valleys for the next several hours.
A short drive through town cemented early
on just how usable the GT is for daily driving;
with a healthy 664 lb-ft of torque available
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