Bentley Turbo R Sport

Bentley Turbo R Sport

The Bentley Turbo R was the car that revived Bentley's sporting reputation after decades of playing second fiddle to Rolls-Royce. Introduced in 1985, the 'R' stood for 'Roadholding,' signaling that this was a Bentley designed to be driven enthusiastically rather than merely chauffeured. It transformed the brand from a badge-engineered Rolls-Royce variant into a genuine performance car marque.

The turbocharged 6.75-litre V8 produced power that Bentley coyly described as 'adequate' — in reality, approximately 385 horsepower and a massive 550 lb-ft of torque. The Garrett turbocharger provided effortless acceleration that could pin occupants into their leather seats, launching the 2,350 kg car to 60 mph in under seven seconds. Bentley never officially quoted power figures during this era, maintaining the tradition of stating the output was merely 'sufficient.'

The chassis was the key advance. Sport-calibrated springs, firmer dampers, larger anti-roll bars, and wider wheels transformed the handling from the standard Mulsanne's floaty indulgence into something genuinely sporting. The car still rode comfortably — this was a Bentley, after all — but it could now be threaded through corners with a precision and confidence that no previous Crewe product had offered.

The interior was pure Bentley opulence. Hand-stitched Connolly leather covered the seats, doors, and dashboard top. Deep-pile Wilton carpet lined the floors. Walnut veneer, hand-finished by skilled craftsmen, trimmed the dashboard and door cappings. Every car took weeks to complete, with individual craftsmen responsible for specific areas of the interior.

The Turbo R became the best-selling Bentley of its era and was instrumental in establishing Bentley as a marque distinct from Rolls-Royce. By the mid-1990s, Bentley was outselling Rolls-Royce, a reversal that would have been unthinkable a decade earlier. The Turbo R proved that there was a market for powerful, sporting luxury cars that offered an alternative to the reserved elegance of Rolls-Royce.

Approximately 7,230 Turbo Rs were produced across the model's twelve-year production run. Today, the car represents extraordinary value, offering hand-built luxury, devastating performance, and genuine rarity at prices that are a fraction of a new luxury sedan. The Turbo R is increasingly recognized as the car that saved Bentley and created the template for the modern Continental GT.