Driving a Le Mans winning LMP1 prototype car isn’t something many road test editors can brag about. Autocar road test editor Steve Sutcliffe somehow convinced the people at Bentley to let him drive their 2003 Le Mans winning car, the Speed 8.
The dream test took place at the Anglesey race circuit in Wales. Although Sutcliffe has driven his fair share of proper fast cars, the Bentley Speed 8 was in a very different league and his comments showed that.
Powered by an Audi-sourced twin-turbo 4.0-liter V8 engine developing somewhere in the rehion of 615 horsepower, the Bentley Speed 8 can reach a top speed of 217 mph (349 km/h) and is geared to hit 97 mph (156 km/h) in first
Naturally, the short (3.5 km) and narrow Anglesey Circuit wasn’t the best track to fully exploit the ballistic performance of the Bentley Speed 8, even more so because Bentley asked Sutcliffe to be very careful with the Speed 8.
That is perfectly understandable given that it was the exact car that won the 2003 Le Mans 24 Hours. What an experience…
By Dan Mihalascu
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