Driving the 2016 Bentley Mulsanne Speed, a British Luxury Twister

Pop quiz: If we asked you which gasoline-powered production car has the most torque, what would you say? The Bugatti Veyron? McLaren P1? LaFerrari? Maybe even a Detroit bruiser?

Wrong, wrong, and still wrong.

Before everyone sharpens their troll spikes, an explanation. First, we said production cars; The Veyron recently reached the end of its line in preparation for the new as-yet-to-be-announced model from Bugatti. And yes, limiting it to gasoline cars takes out the latest electric cars and diesel pickups.
 
That puts the new 2016 Bentley Mulsanne Speed at the top of the list. Bentley has tuned the 6.75-liter twin-turbocharged V-8 engine in the 2016 Mulsanne Speed to put out 811 lb.-ft. of torque, a boost of nearly 60 lb.-ft. over the base Mulsanne, along with an 25 additional hp, for a total of 530 hp. Bentley traces the origins of that 6.75-liter engine back to 1959, making it one of the oldest engines still getting bolted into vehicles — older than the first-generation Chevy small block and the original Lamborghini V-12 engine (which ended with the Murcielago). The 6.75-liter version of the engine went into production in 1968, and over that time Bentley has tripled the power and torque output it gets from the engine.

Which is what’s required for dealing with nearly 6,000 lbs. of hand-built British luxury sedan. Getting up to speed would seem like a Herculean feat, but the Mulsanne Speed quietly cruises up into the triple digits with nary a complaint. Even on the track.

Wait, what?

In the hands of five-time Le Mans winner and Bentley brand ambassador Derek Bell, the Mulsanne Speed feels agile and quick over the undulating F1 Circuit of the Americas track just outside of Austin. Even though Bell admits that he hadn’t driven the track prior to our hot lap, the car feels controlled and stable—even at speeds exceeding 130 mph. It hustles from 0-60 mph in 4.8 seconds and 0-100 mph in just 11 seconds; the theoretical top speed is 190 mph.