Drop-Top Dreams, Part Three: 2013 Bentley Continental GTC V8

The new 500-hp Bentley Continental GTC V8 will arrive this fall, a bit late for the summer driving season, but there's always the more familiar 567-hp V12. Either way, the Continental GTC brings a fabulous combination of high style, unmistakable presence, good response and smooth, stable velocity that no convertible matches.

Let's face it: The best convertible in the world will never be as buttoned-down or as rigid as its fixed-roof counterpart. Bentley brags that this is the world's stiffest convertible with “coupelike refinement,” and that may be true. But with the top up, there's still a bit more road noise and wind noise in the GTC than in the GT coupe. There's also an extra bit of rippling flex through the steering column when you pound over a railroad crossing. Such is the price for open-top motoring.

If you choose to drive your convertible into the winter, the Continental GTC doesn't have all of the high-tech climate-management gizmos. The top is crafted with traditional fabric over a seven-bow frame, heavily insulated and lined with Alcantara. It's exceptionally taut when it's closed and clean in profile. It operates with one button at speeds up to 20 mph, opening or closing in about 25 seconds.

With the top down, buffeting is seldom an issue for those in the GTC's front seats. Put the side windows up, and you probably won't bother with the removable rear wind blocker that stows in the trunk. There's little turbulence holding steady at 80 mph. The neck warmers—small, forced-air vents between the seatback and the headrest—work well but lose effectiveness quickly with distance. If it's really cold, GTC occupants will have to keep heads pressed to the headrests to benefit.

The GTC's all-wheel-drive system helps in foul weather, too—or on a racetrack. It's amazing how this 2.5-ton machine and its massive tires react to a skillful throttle foot. With its traction electronics off, the GTC V8 will take a set, balance and drift opposite-lock through fast corners, tail hanging. And it will consume miles at triple-digit speeds like a magic carpet. Inside, the GTC is all padded, soft leather surfaces, with big, comfortable seats and a hand-finished, bespoke quality that lesser luxury brands don't match.

The GTC V8 is a tad lighter than the V12, slightly sharper, maybe more youthful, and it's substantially more efficient, measured by energy consumption. If you seek the ultimate in conspicuously comfortable, effortlessly rapid top-down motoring, either Continental GTC will do perfectly.