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SL55/63/65/R230 AMG: Bentley GTC vs Audi A4

Old Dec 17, 2006 | 01:28 PM
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Bentley GTC vs Audi A4

As nice as the Bentley GTC is.. the looks on me for this thing.. are really starting to make the price sound a little ridiculous.. kinda like an overpriced lexus sc430..

what does everyone think of the GTC vs the SL? For this price, one would atleast expect a folding hardtop..
Attached Thumbnails Bentley GTC vs Audi A4-cars1.jpg  
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Old Dec 17, 2006 | 02:09 PM
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I don't know, any shots of under the hood?

I'm leaning towards the Bentley. The car pictured, by the way, is our own JuiceIt's car. I love the color combination. Looks like a watermelon smoothie on the inside...
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Old Dec 17, 2006 | 02:38 PM
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Bentley Arnage Red Label
Since that pic is my car I may be a bit biased but in person the Bentley is awesome.Comparing it to an Audi is a joke. I agree it should have a hardtop but the soft top is very well built and on the inside you can't tell its a convert. That said, the prices now are crazy and it looks like I am going to be keeping my SL. I have both for sale and whichever sells first is gone. I would rather make a few bucks on one than lose my *** on the other. If I do sell the Bentley I would definately buy another when the newness is gone and the prices follow suit.
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Old Dec 17, 2006 | 03:19 PM
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why not wait for the new arnage convertible? imho.. that's one slick new ride..

Originally Posted by Juice it
Since that pic is my car I may be a bit biased but in person the Bentley is awesome.Comparing it to an Audi is a joke. I agree it should have a hardtop but the soft top is very well built and on the inside you can't tell its a convert. That said, the prices now are crazy and it looks like I am going to be keeping my SL. I have both for sale and whichever sells first is gone. I would rather make a few bucks on one than lose my *** on the other. If I do sell the Bentley I would definately buy another when the newness is gone and the prices follow suit.
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Old Dec 17, 2006 | 03:28 PM
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Bentley Arnage Red Label
Originally Posted by seattlecarfreak
why not wait for the new arnage convertible? imho.. that's one slick new ride..

Because my new 07 resolution is to not lose my *** on a car. I am going to try some cool stuff that has taken its big hit BEFORE I buy it! SLR,Carrera GT are on the radar but I think they still have a little more to drop. I would say when either hit 250k or less you will still lose when you sell but percentage wise I don't think it will be too bad.
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Old Dec 17, 2006 | 04:20 PM
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Comparing Bentley to an Audi or even Volkswagen is not "a joke". No matter what you call it, Bentley GT is made at a same factory as many audi and volkswagen cars and shares many of their components. The interior, chassis, and the even the V12 engine are very similar to Volkswagen phaeton V12. There is more to a car than just a "name". To me, real Bentleys have to be hand made and not share any components with other lower-priced cars. Arnage is still the real Bentley, and not a dressed up Audi/Volkswagen like GT...
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Old Dec 17, 2006 | 04:53 PM
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Bentley Arnage Red Label
Originally Posted by Tuskir
Comparing Bentley to an Audi or even Volkswagen is not "a joke". No matter what you call it, Bentley GT is made at a same factory as many audi and volkswagen cars and shares many of their components. The interior, chassis, and the even the V12 engine are very similar to Volkswagen phaeton V12. There is more to a car than just a "name". To me, real Bentleys have to be hand made and not share any components with other lower-priced cars. Arnage is still the real Bentley, and not a dressed up Audi/Volkswagen like GT...

I guess we won't be seeing you in a CGT anytime soon!
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Old Dec 17, 2006 | 06:41 PM
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Originally Posted by Tuskir
Comparing Bentley to an Audi or even Volkswagen is not "a joke". No matter what you call it, Bentley GT is made at a same factory as many audi and volkswagen cars and shares many of their components. The interior, chassis, and the even the V12 engine are very similar to Volkswagen phaeton V12. There is more to a car than just a "name". To me, real Bentleys have to be hand made and not share any components with other lower-priced cars. Arnage is still the real Bentley, and not a dressed up Audi/Volkswagen like GT...
My last luxo dar was a Phaeton W12 and I agree with everything you've said. If VW had done the Maybach type release with the Phaeton, ie. not putting a VW badge on the car, they could have bumped the price on the Phaeton 100K. IMO the Phaeton was under priced and the Bentley is over priced.
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Old Dec 17, 2006 | 07:55 PM
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Originally Posted by NOTA4RE
My last luxo dar was a Phaeton W12 and I agree with everything you've said. If VW had done the Maybach type release with the Phaeton, ie. not putting a VW badge on the car, they could have bumped the price on the Phaeton 100K. IMO the Phaeton was under priced and the Bentley is over priced.
Yup, it was a huge mistake to call Phaeton a Volkswagen. And they wander why it never sold good?! With GT, it was a huge success in calling it a "Bentley"! If they called it an Audi, would it sell as good? No! Most people who buy these cars are not real car enthusiasts and don't know jack **** about cars period. They think, "WOW its a Bentley! Imma buy it!". But what makes a Bentley a Bentley, and an Audi an Audi? Clearly its not just the name! You were obviously right in seeing the value of the VW phaeton W12. It might not have the name, but it has all the quality and features without the "name" price tag. Its like the famous saying: " If it smells like ****, looks like ****, and tastes like ****, it probably is ****.. no matter what you call it".
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Old Dec 17, 2006 | 09:03 PM
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Originally Posted by Tuskir
Yup, it was a huge mistake to call Phaeton a Volkswagen. And they wander why it never sold good?! With GT, it was a huge success in calling it a "Bentley"! If they called it an Audi, would it sell as good? No! Most people who buy these cars are not real car enthusiasts and don't know jack **** about cars period. They think, "WOW its a Bentley! Imma buy it!". But what makes a Bentley a Bentley, and an Audi an Audi? Clearly its not just the name! You were obviously right in seeing the value of the VW phaeton W12. It might not have the name, but it has all the quality and features without the "name" price tag. Its like the famous saying: " If it smells like ****, looks like ****, and tastes like ****, it probably is ****.. no matter what you call it".
Except the Bentley is far from "****". Regardless of the badging the GT, CGT and Flyinng Spur Bentleys are a very comfortable, powerful and well built product. You are quite mistaken that only people who are not car enthusiasts will be the only buyers. Those who know about the car will appreciate the Bentley style and the German engineering. But if it makes you sleep better at night saying most Bentley owners don't know jack ****, go right ahead.
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Old Dec 17, 2006 | 10:49 PM
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i havent driven either, but they cant really be compared. GT only looks unassuming from the back, but i like it. nevertheless, i like the arnage better
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Old Dec 18, 2006 | 07:57 PM
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The GT convertible is defintiely the best of the 'Vdub' Bentleys. It somehow makes the car look smaller and a guy at Motor Trend even thought it handled better than the coupe. Yeah, a steel hardtop would have been more practical but these cars are inherently impractical and already way overweight -- they even make modern SLs look sort of slim.

And let's face it -- the Arnage line is laughably out of date, even if I love staring at its instrument panel.
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Old Dec 23, 2006 | 07:41 PM
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Comparing a GTC to an Audi/VW in terms of a name is a joke, but in terms of the components, etc.....let's be honest, there is not much of a difference between ANY car.
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Old Dec 23, 2006 | 10:45 PM
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IMO, the Bentley is a great car. Saw one, a coupe, a little while ago, and it looks better in real life than in pictures. And I thought it looked good in the pictures, LOL. The Conti's actually are partially hand made, just not completely like the Arnage's. BTW, anybody ever read a review on one of the Arnage T's? It's supposed to handle absolutley amazing in sport mode, especially the '07.
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Old Dec 23, 2006 | 11:00 PM
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My biggest complaint about the new generation Bentleys (GT, Flying Spur, GTC) is that damn Phaeton combined nav/audio/climate system. I was able to drive both the Spur and the GT and it was a pain in the a** to operate. We got lost in lower Manhattan and even the Bentley rep couldn't figure out how to work the navigation to get us back to the dealership. Can any of the Bentley owners tell me if it is a bad system or do you just have to get used to it.
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Old Dec 23, 2006 | 11:28 PM
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Originally Posted by pmb600
My biggest complaint about the new generation Bentleys (GT, Flying Spur, GTC) is that damn Phaeton combined nav/audio/climate system. I was able to drive both the Spur and the GT and it was a pain in the a** to operate. We got lost in lower Manhattan and even the Bentley rep couldn't figure out how to work the navigation to get us back to the dealership. Can any of the Bentley owners tell me if it is a bad system or do you just have to get used to it.

I think its a nice system and it just takes a little time before you get it down. The sound is great and the Nav works great as well. I think the VW stuff bothers the people that owned those cars more than it does people like me that have never been in a Phaeton and could care less what it has in it. No cars at this level are "worth" the money and they are bought for many different reasons. You can pretty much take any car and find something 1/5 the price that does pretty much the same thing and has the same features. If the owner perceives his car to be a better quality and look than something else and wants to spend the money on it thats fine with me. Personally I think a Maybach is an overpriced tarted up S class but people buy them and love them so to each his own.
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Old Dec 24, 2006 | 03:03 PM
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Originally Posted by Juice it
Personally I think a Maybach is an overpriced tarted up S class but people buy them and love them so to each his own.
And the Bentley is the same to the Phaeton. The Phaeton is 98% as good as the Bentley at 50% the cost.
As for the Nav in the Bentley/Phaeton, it is sub par to some nav units in cars that cast 1/5 the price. The best Nav unit IMO is in the Nissan.
Someone said the SL has birds eye veiw on the nav is this true? If so how do I get the birds eye feature to work on my SL?
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Old Dec 24, 2006 | 04:29 PM
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Originally Posted by NOTA4RE
And the Bentley is the same to the Phaeton. The Phaeton is 98% as good as the Bentley at 50% the cost.
As for the Nav in the Bentley/Phaeton, it is sub par to some nav units in cars that cast 1/5 the price. The best Nav unit IMO is in the Nissan.
Someone said the SL has birds eye veiw on the nav is this true? If so how do I get the birds eye feature to work on my SL?
Where did the "98%" come from??
What is the basis of that statement?
Experience?
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Old Dec 24, 2006 | 04:36 PM
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Originally Posted by Tuskir
Yup, it was a huge mistake to call Phaeton a Volkswagen. And they wander why it never sold good?! With GT, it was a huge success in calling it a "Bentley"! If they called it an Audi, would it sell as good? No! Most people who buy these cars are not real car enthusiasts and don't know jack **** about cars period. They think, "WOW its a Bentley! Imma buy it!". But what makes a Bentley a Bentley, and an Audi an Audi? Clearly its not just the name! You were obviously right in seeing the value of the VW phaeton W12. It might not have the name, but it has all the quality and features without the "name" price tag. Its like the famous saying: " If it smells like ****, looks like ****, and tastes like ****, it probably is ****.. no matter what you call it".
Whoa!!
After buying every top performance car I could get my hands on in the last 20 years,rallying for Factory Fiat team in '78,'79 and '80,amateur racing and tracking my cars whenever time allows,I am finding out now that I am not an "enthusiast" for buying a Flying Spur!
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Old Jan 3, 2007 | 11:53 PM
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Originally Posted by Juice it
I think its a nice system and it just takes a little time before you get it down. The sound is great and the Nav works great as well. I think the VW stuff bothers the people that owned those cars more than it does people like me that have never been in a Phaeton and could care less what it has in it. No cars at this level are "worth" the money and they are bought for many different reasons. You can pretty much take any car and find something 1/5 the price that does pretty much the same thing and has the same features. If the owner perceives his car to be a better quality and look than something else and wants to spend the money on it thats fine with me. Personally I think a Maybach is an overpriced tarted up S class but people buy them and love them so to each his own.
Juice IT, these guys say some funny things about cars that they don't have to drive or purchase. You are very accurate in your analysis.
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