THERE'S A DIFFERENCE between expensive and valuable, but Bentley's substantial Continental Flying Spur manages to convey both characteristics in a tasteful fashion. While the 17-foot-long car comes across at first as way too much car for most people, it soon establishes a surprisingly intimate relationship with the driver. In the case of this Series 51 version, one of 14 special designs is selected by the owner-to-be - including contrasting tricolor upholstery in eye-catching hues teamed with special veneers for dash, door trim, console and trays - the effect is like sitting in your own cozy jewel case. This jewel case rides with a wonderful sense of isolation yet little unnecessary body motion. A new touch-screen interface (with 30-gig hard drive) allows the driver to select suspension damping levels at a dab of the fingertip, then revel in how good the ride/handling compromise is on such a large car in any of the settings.
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