Like Lamborghini, Bentley is well-established and comfortable in its latest incarnation as part of the VW/Audi group; but even more than Lamborghini insisting it still has its Italian passion, Bentley can say without fear of contradiction that it still has its quintessential English character.

Way back in the 1920s, company founder WO Bentley said that he wanted to build a good car, a fast car, the fastest car in its class. And the men who steer the brand today, notably Chairman and Chief Executive Dr. Franz-Josef Paefgen and Director of Chassis and Powertrain, Brian Gush are men who continue the WO Bentley philosophy.

That explains why Bentley’s stand is dominated by the Continental GT Speed and the Bentley Brooklands; two very different cars but with one very similar philosophy. But WO also believed the character of a Bentley should be unflustered and effortless, and that philosophy survives, too.

So the Continental GT Speed is the most powerful production Bentley ever built, and the first (officially) to top 200 mph. In Dr. Paefgen’s words it is a “harder-edged, more sporting” variation of the Continental GT Coupe that has helped take Bentley sales from 1,000 a year to near 10,000 since its launch in 2003 — and could actually see the 10,000 barrier broken in 2007.

It was inspired by WO’s first 3.0-liter ”Speed Model” of the early 1920s. In 2007 it comes from internal improvements that lift power from “only” 552 bhp in the normal Continental GT to a nice, round 600 bhp in the GT Speed, with peak torque similarly increased from 650 to 750Nm (479 lb-ft to 553 lb-ft) — but with reduced emissions and improved fuel economy, if economy is truly a word you could ever really use in the context of cars like these.

It has tauter suspension without too badly compromising the ride, and the biggest brakes on any car currently in production, including the option of carbon/silicon carbide discs. It is a very serious performance car indeed.

Bentley Brooklands

And the other car on the Tokyo stand, the Bentley Brooklands, is proof that while the Continental GT has attracted a new generation, there’s plenty of life left in the older Bentley line, too. This is a hand-assembled two-door coupe offering “first-class luxury travel for four adults with supercar performance.” It does that with the latest version of the iconic 6.75-liter Bentley V8, in its most powerful form ever, with 530 bhp and a staggering 1050Nm (774 lb-ft) of torque.

So in the best traditions of WO Bentley this is a car that doesn’t have to try too hard to achieve great things — in this case a top speed of 184 mph, 0-60 mph in 5.0 seconds, and 50-70mph in only 2.4 seconds, all in utter luxury.