BENTLEY MOTORSPORT REVIEWS 2014 SEASON

Bentley Motorsport reflects on a successful debut season for the new Continental GT3. Having completed the five rounds of the Blancpain Endurance Series in Europe, and the second half of the Pirelli World Challenge in the U.S.A. in preparation for a full series next year, the Continental GT3 has scored three victories on two continents and finished a championship in second place.
The European season started at Monza, where the car proved itself to be a fast and durable competitor from the outset. The three-man driving team of Jérôme d’Ambrosio, Duncan Tappy and Antoine Leclerc in car #8 drove a superb race to finish 6^th in the Continental GT3s first competition race outing, while the #7 car came home two places behind in 8^th. The M-Sport Bentley team left Italy satisfied but with a list of areas on which to progress.
Improvements were demonstrated in compelling fashion at the second round, at the home of British motorsport, Silverstone. With works-supported Bentleys starting their first race in the UK in 84 years, it was clear that the team's hard work to improve the setup of the Continental GT3, and the speed and efficiency of their pit stops, was paying off. After an enthralling three hour battle, Steven Kane took the chequered flag in car #7, capturing the car's first win in only its second full competition race. Steven, together with teammates Guy Smith and Andy Meyrick, celebrated Bentley's first race victory since the famous dominance of the 24 Hours of Le Mans in 2003.
The team continued their form in impressive style at the next event, the evening race at Paul Ricard. After another gruelling contest, the #7 Continental GT3 scored its second victory in a row, and M-Sport Bentley left France sitting at the top of both Drivers and Teams Endurance Pro Championships.
Meanwhile, in North America, Dyson Racing Team Bentley had taken delivery of the first of two Continental GT3s. Using the second half of the Pirelli World Challenge series to prepare both team and car for 2015, Bentley Boy Butch Leitzinger immediately showed an impressive turn of speed, finishing 6^th in the team’s first race at Road America.
Back in Europe, Bentley Motorsport arrived at Spa-Francorchamps in Belgium in July, to face the Continental GT3's toughest test yet - the Spa 24 Hours. While the cars showed good pace in practice and qualifying, luck was not on the team's side in the opening two hours. The #8 car suffered suspension damage after being hit by a competitor, while car #7 sustained damage to a brake line after running over debris from incidents between other cars. After repairs to both cars, the fight back through the order began from 55^th and 50^th positions respectively. Only then was the real pace of the car obvious, as by the end of the race both cars had climbed to finish in the top 20, with car #7 9^th in class and so scoring vital championship points. The #8 car also finished strongly, proving the durability of the racer and once again contributing vital data and experience to the team effort.
Before the last race of the Blancpain Endurance Series came the finale of the Pirelli World Challenge. With Dyson Racing Team Bentley now running two cars, the second piloted by Guy Smith, the development of the car was going well - Butch Leitzinger had scored the team's first podium at Sonoma in August, while the car recorded fastest laps and broken track records. The final round at Miller Motorsports Park in Utah proved to be the highlight though, as Guy Smith steered his Continental GT3 to victory in the 50-minute sprint race, joined on the podium by Butch in 3^rd. This win was Bentley's first ever outside Europe, and will undoubtedly be the platform on which to build a strong campaign in the U.S.A. for 2015.
Bentley finished the Endurance season with the iRacing.com Nürburgring 1000 km, knowing that they were in contention to finish in the top three in both Drivers and Teams championships. Atrocious weather conditions made for a very difficult first four hours of the race for both Bentleys, but as the track started to dry both cars were in the top 20. With the Continentals making strong progress through the field as their competitors faltered, it became clear that a 5^th-in-class finish for car #7 would secure the runners-up spot in both championships. With 20 minutes to go, Steven Kane made the pass from 6^th to 5^th, and at the chequered flag the championship was decided. Guy Smith, Andy Meyrick and Steven Kane finished as runners-up in the Pro Endurance Drivers Championship, while Bentley secured second place in the Teams Championship.
Bentley's Member of the Board for Engineering, Rolf Frech, comments:
"2014 has been a very good debut season for us. Bentley belongs in motorsport, and from the start of our programme two years ago, we knew the Continental GT had potential as a racer. That promise has been realised both in Europe and America this year, and in 2015 we look forward to racing on four Continents as customer teams start competing in the Middle East and Asia, and we have customer cars competing as far afield as China and New Zealand before Christmas. I'm proud of our programme and our victories and we're all looking forward to the new competitions that next year will bring."
Bentley Motorsport now starts test and development programmes in preparation for 2015. During October of this year, Bentley starts Project NBR24 – a dedicated exercise of preparation and development work to allow Bentley Motorsport to enter the 2015 Nürburgring 24 Hours. Initially, this will involve entry in to two rounds of the VLN series in Germany, to develop both car and drivers in preparation for the 24-hour race. Meanwhile, Absolute Racing will be competing in the Shanghai and Macau rounds of GT Asia with a Continental GT3, starting next weekend.
Bentley Motorsport's complete 2015 schedule will be announced in January. Meanwhile, Bentley's short documentary film of the team’s TOTAL 24 Hours of Spa race weekend is now available online and downloadable at www.bentleymedia.com.

UK Car Discount 2014 Car Awards

UK Car Discount is proud to launch part two of our very first new car awards. The 2014 car awards are a combination customer feedback supplemented with our own professional knowledge, tapping into decades of experience. In the final part three we will look at the luxury end of the market with a final 5 awards.
Here are our 2014 new car awards 6-10:
Best Coupe – Volkswagen Scirocco
The Scirocco was welcomed back with open arms when it made it’s comeback in 2008, even many of the critics who were a little taken-a- back by the new design have been converted into fans. The Scirocco takes a lot of its characteristics from the iconic VW Golf and it boasts superb handling and refinement that make it both fun and comfortable to drive.
Inside the Sciroccco is surprisingly roomy and it boasts a generous boot for a car in its class (292 litres). As you’d expect from Volkswagen build quality is very good. The biggest seller is the entry-level relatively economical Scirocco BlueMotion Technology 2.0 TDI 150PS 6 Spd Manual offers up to 67mpgwhich is perfect for those looking for an extremely eye-catching, stylish coupe that offers a touch of nostalgia and reasonable running costs for a coupe. If you full speed experience then the Scirocco R BlueMotion 2.0 TSI 280PS 6 Spd DSG may be for you, it can propel you from 0-62mph in 5.5 seconds.
The Scirocco may have cheaper rivals, the Seat Leon SC is notably one but for sheer looks and nostalgia plus some amazing feedback from very happy owners it had to the get nod in this category.
Best Convertible – Volkswagen Golf
The VW Golf Cabriolet is based on the standard Volkswagen Golf hatchback, so you get the same interior and excellent build quality. Inside offers room for 4 people to be comfortable. The electric roof only takes 9.5 seconds to open one of the quickest in its class. Everything about the VW Golf says quality.
If you’re looking for lower running costs then the Bluemotion diesel option can offer up to 64mpg and CO2 emissions of just of 117g/km. At the performance end there’s the VW Golf R Cabriolet that can take you from 0-62mph in 6.4 seconds.
The VW Golf cabriolet also offers great residual value and is an all round excellent cabriolet.
Best Hot Hatch – Seat Leon Cupra
The Seat Leon has really impressed us and not just the hot hatch, the entire range delivers stunning vehicles, very good build quality and equipment levels at very competitive prices.
The Cupra delivers in a very competitive hot hatch sector and what makes it a winner for us its stunning looks. Then there’s the sharp acceleration offering 0-62mph in around 5.9 seconds and its razor sharp handing, despite this the Cupra is still built on the same foundations as the standard Leon Hatchback an comfortably doubles as a family car. We prefer the look of the 3 door model but many will probably find the 5 door model more practical.
What’s more the Leon Cupra comes packed with equipment, excellent build quality and still manages to gazump many of its rivals on price and running costs with the most frugal model offering 149g/km emissions and up to 44.1mpg.
We love the Seat Leon Cupra!!
Best Economical 4×4 – Hyundai ix35
The Hyundai ix35 is cheaper and better equipped than many the vehicles in its class. We love the sculpted design that make the ix35 a real eye-catcher. There’s a big jump in price for the top-end trim-levels but we think the SE model offers plenty of equipment, combine that with the 2.0 CRDi Diesel 4WD Manual engine and you can get anything up to 51mpg.
The Hyundai ix35 is a superb vehicle inside and out and it won’t cost you a fortune either for a vehicle in its class. Combine that with a 5 year unlimited mileage warranty, five years roadside assistance and annual vehicle healthchecks and we think you’re onto a winner!!
Best Electric/Hybrd – BMW i3 The first thing you’ll notice about the i3 is its excellent quality inside and out and dashes of luxury that makes this car stand out from the crowd. Handing-wise the i3 is agile and responsive which is perfect for around-town journeys, it also boasts a very small turning circle of less than 10 metres and is surprisingly nippy able to get you from 0-62mph in 7.2 seconds for the standard i3 or 7.9 seconds for the Range Extender model.
The range-extender model offers a useful alterative for those wishing to use the vehicle on longer journeys and may be worried about losing charge completely..Its two-cylinder engine kicks in when the battery reaches a very low level and provides enough charge to keep the car running for an extended period.
The standard i3 has a maximum range of 80-100 miles with a full charge taking 4 hours (fast AC) or 8-10 hours (regular plug) and offers zero emissions.
The range Extender version has a maximum range of 160-186 miles with charging times about the same as the standard i3 but with CO2 emissions of 13g/km.
We recommend the standard i3 model and think its a perfect for people making regular short journeys around town who want to make a green statement.