Bentley’s return to Kent with its new showroom at Sevenoaks aims to set a new standard in luxury motoring. Neill Barston checked out its facilities and drove one of the fastest coupe’s on the market, the much-vaunted Continental GT.

Anyone who has seen the early James Bond movies will have doubtless drooled over the Aston Martins which swept into the super-cool spy’s world.

Yet few realise that the Kent based creator of the series, Ian Fleming, originally intended the secret service man to be driving an equally striking steed, the Bentley Continental.

These wonderfully stylish cars were icons of their age, so there has been much deserved fanfare regarding their revival.

They aren’t simply designed, they are created, according to the seductive marketing blurb. Such slick slogans would appear like mere posturing from most manufacturers, yet not in this case given the marque’s level of craftsmanship.

Underlining this, the firm’s new owner Volkswagen has reportedly made a major investment of £500 million for product development.

Taking the chance to get behind the wheel of the new Continental GT for the launch of the marque’s new million-pound dealership at Sevenoaks was certainly a rewarding experience.

The company’s founder, London born Walter Owen Bentley, would surely be proud of this imposing arrival on the block some 86 years on from the firm’s first models.

Cynics could argue it might be nudging fairly close to the average house price in Britain at nearly £120,000, yet there’s a supreme level of engineering in these mighty motors.

Understandably, they rate highly in the affections of sales manager Mark Wootton.

He explained they’re not so much salesmen at Bentley, more information providers - if you have the means to acquire one, they don’t have to be given a heavy sell.

Frankly, it is not hard to see why they are so revered when you consider the fact that you have a six-litre twin turbo engine at your disposal.

Equally desirable is its cousin, the regally named Flying Spur, that holds a lofty claim for being the fastest production car on our roads.

As for the GT, it is almost able to match it with near-200 mph capability. Its 555bhp engine offers lightening acceleration of 0-60 in 4.7 seconds.

The GT handles with supreme assurance through the corners and even on slightly rougher roads which you suspect might unsettle this pedigree machine. The chic solid-wood dash houses an info-tainment system with sat-nav, advanced traffic report system and a trip metre which can analyse endless permutations.

Plush leather seats are as standard and everywhere you look around its compact cabin there are some smart design touches.

The tiptronic gearbox allows you to either sit back and cruise in automatic mode or for a more racy experience there is a paddle-shift option.

Those seeking a more traditional form of luxury motoring would do well to examine the Bentley Arnage limousine, which starts from £160,000.

It’s probably the closest you will come to royalty, with a similar model being commissioned as the Queen’s state limousine.

Whichever option you choose, there’s no doubt it would be extremely hard to feel disappointed.

"The only thing that comes as standard is the badge," explained the Sevenoaks centre’s principle dealer Ian Barrow.

You heard me right; it would be quite improper to just point at one of these cars and place an admittedly large stack of money on the desk.

Buying one is quite an experience, with clients being ushered into the marketing suite with its plasma screen display showing you every possible gadget and trim variable imaginable to personalise your vehicle.

Everything from deep-pile lambs wool carpeting to the colour of your seat belts can be selected.

Just to top it off, you receive a guided tour of facilities at the company factory in Crewe.

While the plus points are plain to see, could there possibly be any down sides to owning one? Well, they may not be the most frugal in terms of fuel economy, and will cost a fair amount to service. But such maintenance concerns are well catered for.

As Ian explained, they have spent significant sums on its service centre.

He said: "There has not been Bentley representation in the county for four or five years so to bring it here to Sevenoaks is fantastic."

FACTFILE

Bentley Continental GT

PRICE: £115,000-£118, 750

INSURANCE GROUP: 20

PERFORMANCE: Max Speed 190mph+ / 0-60mph 4.7s

FUEL CONSUMPTION: (combined) 18mpg [est]

STANDARD SAFETY FEATURES: Twin front, curtain and side airbags / ABS / stability control

DEALER DETAILS: Bentley Kent is at 92 London Road, Sevenoaks. Call 0870 410 3737 for more details or go to www.bentleyapproved.com/bentleyapproved/kent

* WO Bentley, a former railway engineer started the company in 1919. He made his name by replacing cast-iron pistons with lighter aluminium ones.

* The 1920s were the glory days for the firm, with the famous Bentley boys securing victory at Le Mans. Against the company’s wishes, it passed into ownership of Rolls Royce in the 1930s.

* The company’s production plant at Crewe has a computer record of every component in each car which leaves the factory.

n Specialist engineers test each engine by machine and also by ear. They are trained to detect as many as 70 different possible faults.

* A typical Bentley needs 15 cow skins to make up the 400 pieces of hide for each vehicle.