OUR CARS
ith a road trip in the
works, it seemed the
ideal time to experience
Bentley’s aftersalesservice. We were lucky enough
to have had the Continental GT
thoroughly serviced before it arrived
at A ut o c a r, s o t he s e n si ble c hoic e w a s
a si mple he a lt h c he c k , ju s t t o e n s u r e
e v e r y t h i n g w a s a s it shou ld b e.
I t u r ne d up at Ja c k Ba r c l ay
Aftersales in Wandsworth, London,
on a Friday morning, and already
I’d behaved contrary to the typical
Bentley owner. On arriving, David
Fellowes, group aftersales director
of HR Owen, Jack Barclay’s umbrella
firm, explained that 95% of cars
serviced at the site are picked up
and delivered back to the owner. As
a Continental GT ‘owner’, I’m most
l i k e l y t o b o ok i n w ork my s e l f, but i f
I owned a Mulsanne or Flying Spur,
it would be my staff instead. I don’t
have any staff, unless I can describe
my boyfriend as such...?
You might have read our feature
on t he out f it r e c e nt l y (‘Ja c k of
W
Our Conti heads to the workshop for a quick once-over
BENTLEY CONTINENTAL GT
All Trades’, 17 July) but suffice to
s ay, t h i s pl a c e op e r at e s i n pa r t s of
s o c ie t y t h at mo s t of u s c a n h a rd l y
imagine. There’s a Porsche 959 in
the corner being stored for a loyal
client, plus two Rolls-Royces which
were shipped in containers from
the Middle East for servicing here,
s uc h i s t he pr e s t i ge of t he pl a c e. It ’s
h a rd t o k now w h at s e c u r e s t h i s le v e l
of de m a nd (a side f r om e xc e l le nt
customer service, which Fellowes
assures me the firm delivers), but it
does hold the Royal Warrant, which
mu s t go s ome w ay t o i mpr e s si n g
legions of dignitaries and the rest.
After my car is washed (hoorah!),
it’s parked on one of the centre’s
23 ramps and the technician, Rory
Pankhurst, works through a long
checklist, with the car in threepositions: on the f loor, and then at
two different elevated heights. The
inspection includes a full systems
check of around 40 control modules
via a diagnostics machine, a f luid
level check and a nose under the
bonnet, plus a careful look inside
and out to seek any imperfection.
Higher up on the ramp, Pankhurst
looks at suspension, brakes, tyres,
wheels, cooling system, gearbox and
more. He says it’s a careful process
t o e n s u r e he do e sn’t me s s up t he a i r
suspension’s tolerances.
Pankhurst has worked here
for six years, starting on a three-
year apprenticeship. He went
to Mercedes-Benz for a year
w h ic h , he s ay s , “a l low e d h i m
to appreciate the pedigree of
Bentley”, before returning.
He ’s a nov ic e c ompa r e d t o
mo s t of t he 14 t e c h n ic i a n s at
Jack Barclay Bentley Aftersales,
given that the average length
of s e r v ic e he r e i s 27 y e a r s (t he
longest-serving member of the
team is a 46-year veteran).The health check takes around 40
minutes. How much? It’s happily a
free service, although any suggested
w ork c ome s at a pr ic e , of c ou r s e.
Once the health check is completed,
I receive an email update detailing
any recommended work and through
which I can press a button to give the
go-ahead to anything I want done.
Our Conti was all fine, except for
a query on its tyres. Now, I’m not
saying that Squires Prior and Calo,
who borrowed the car for a video, had
a ny t h i n g t o do w it h t he sl i g ht l y w or n
tread but... To replace all four came to
the princely sum of £1786.96. I didn’t
press the ‘accept’ button.
Jack Barclay has recently
introduced a service plan, which is
novel at this end of the market. The
first two services of a Continental
GT (or Bentayga) would cost £1595,
which saves around £600, I’m told.
RACHEL BURGESSBentley owners tend not to get this involved
SHINE WHINE
Catch the sun at the wrong
time and the reflections in the
Piano Black dash veneer can be
unnervingly distracting.
EXPERIENCE TO SAVOUR
The joy of running a Bentley
h a s n’ t wo r n of f. C l i m b i n g i n to th e
luxurious cabin, firing up the W12,
gliding down the road... delightful.
LOATHE IT
LOVE IT
MILEAGE 9670
WHY WE’RE RUNNING IT
To see if Bentley’s third-generation
Continental GT rules the roost as the
ultimate grand tourer
OWN ONE? SHARE YOUR EXPERIENCE
BENTLEY
CONTINENTAL GT W12
Price £159,100 Price as tested £208,765
Faults None Expenses None
Economy 26.9mpg Last seen 24.7.1 9
TEST DATA
Mini 5dr Cooper S Sport
MILEAGE 6925 LAST SEEN 17.7.19
There’s a lot of contention over our
Mini Cooper S’s five doors. I won’t
lie – I easily prefer the three-door’s
looks, but that aside, the five-door’s
appearance has grown on me
significantly, especially in a couple of
colours I’ve seen: Solaris (a punchy
orange) and Emerald Grey. Our
Starlight Blue paint is also proving
popular across the range, if Minis on
the road are anything to go by. RB
Citroën Berlingo
MILEAGE 6490 LAST SEEN 17.6.19
The orange splashes around the
front foglights and on the Airbump
side panels are part of the XTR
customisation pack and help to make
the Berlingo more millennial-friendly
than a van-based MPV might be.
Even parked next to the new Toyota
Supra, it’s a lot easier on the eyes
than the Vauxhall Combo Life with
which it shares a platform. LL
Ford Focus ST-Line X
MILEAGE 4667 LAST SEEN 26.6.19
You can’t judge the true practicality
of a family hatch until you’ve done
an Ikea run in it – and having recently
moved house, art editor Sarah was
happy to oblige. Sarah made good
use of the ample interior space the
fourth-gen Focus offers, cramming
in home furnishings with the same
vigour she employs to stick car
pics on an Autocar page. JA
OOUURR C CAARRSS
7 AUGUST 2019 AUTOCAR.CO.UK 69