Nov. 19 (Bloomberg) -- The elite are in trouble. Those exotic carmakers who produce fewer than 10,000 cars a year are looking at future fuel regulations and are realizing they need a plan. Fast.

Coming up with an alternative-fuel powertrain is a big leap, especially since it’s harder than ever to move $200,000 cars right now.

So it is with Bentley, the once-English brand now owned by Volkswagen Group. Its best-selling models are the souped-up Speed models of its Continental GT coupe and convertible. Now, the follow-up is the uber-alpha-zoom-zoom model, the $273,000 Continental Supersports, which hits 60 in 3.7 seconds and has a top speed of 204 mph.

Best throw a bone to the environmentalists, though, no matter how small or lame. So the Supersports is flex-fuel capable, meaning it can also burn bio-fuel that comes from renewable sources like corn and sugar cane, versus just the high-octane stuff at the pump. Problem solved.

Well, not quite.

E85 biofuel is exceedingly rare outside of the Midwest -- owing to smaller corn supplies and local politics -- and I can’t imagine Amex Black cardholders demanding it at their local stations. Anyway, you won’t be able to buy one of those flex- fuel vehicles in the U.S. for quite some time -- just the regular old petrol-burning version.

At a recent press conference about the Supersports’s flex- fuel capabilities, nobody once mentioned that pertinent point. It wasn’t until pressing representatives that I realized my black-on-black test car had a standard, if amazingly powerful, Bentley twin-turbo W-12. If you put ethanol in there, bad things would happen.

Gasoline Fueled

The holdup, the company says, is the U.S. approval process. The first 200 models sent here will be normal engines, and it will presumably take some time to sell them.

Basic flex-fuel technology is not new. General Motors has used it for years, and for the 2010 model year, all full-size trucks and SUVS from both GM and Ford can run on ethanol.

Other high-ticket automakers are also looking to the future. Ferrari says it will build a hybrid. Rolls-Royce’s chief has said he would like to see an electric Phantom.

It’s too bad about the Supersports’S poor green credentials, because in the plain, old, Old-World world, the vehicle is phenomenal.

“This is our interpretation of a supercar,” Christophe Georges, Bentley’s president and chief operating officer, told me. “Performance-wise it competes with the Ferrari 599 and Aston Martin DBS, but it’s still a Bentley.”

Refined Comfort

By that he means comfort is an imperative, as are the reserved but formidable looks. As for the supercar claim, the Supersports is certainly not your average loll-around-town Bentley.

Powered by the W-12, which puts out a walloping 621 horsepower and 590 pound-feet of torque, this 5,000-pound machine moves to 60 mph about as fast as a Ferrari F430.

I had simply expected a more powerful version of the GT Speed, yet the Supersports is so thoroughly revised as to become something else. Versus the Speed, the Supersports loses the back seats and 243 pounds; has a reworked all-wheel-drive system and keener front suspension; boasts the largest carbon-ceramic brakes ever made on a production car; and comes with a faster automatic transmission.

The result is almost unbelievable drive quality. It’s the picture of poise. Over hundreds of miles of rolling hills, wet pavement, gravel and bumpy parts of New Jersey, which haven’t seen a work crew since the first season of the “Sopranos,” the chassis never felt unsettled. Not once.

Eating Asphalt

This car positively gobbled asphalt, seemingly shoving it into the mesh grill and expelling it out the fat elongated twin tailpipes. In a sense it reminded me of the Nissan GTR, a sports car legendary for its ability to smooth out driver error and crappy roads. It feels a bit effortless.

Consider it speed with the Bentley touch.

Even around town you can sense the power, a low undulating throb akin to walking in the foyer of the White House. Press on the gas pedal and it doesn’t shove you back in the seat like a Bugatti Veyron or Dodge Viper; rather the digital speedometer begins silkily rolling through numbers.

While my bank account tells me that there are 273,000 reasons I couldn’t own this car, the most important one is the fact I’d be on first-name terms with every police officer north of the Mason-Dixon line.

Flared Haunches

Its styling differences are subtle. The Supersports is wider in the rear, the haunches a bit more flared, the tail pipes wider. There’s no badging at all, no obvious sign that you’ve anted up an extra $80,000 or so over the regular Continental GT.

The interior is stunning, a mix of shiny metal, quilted Alcantara and carbon-fiber weave. The seats are actual racing seats which adjust manually and offer pincer-tight bolstering and hard padding. Many drivers will find them uncomfortable.

By the standards of yesteryear, the Supersports is a fabulous machine. As a herald of the green future, it falls on its butt.

The 2010 Bentley Continental Supersports at a Glance

Engine: Twin-turbo W-12 with 621 horsepower and 590 pound- feet of torque.

Transmission: six-speed automatic.

Speed: 0 to 60 mph in 3.7 seconds.

Gas mileage per gallon: 13 city; 24 highway.

Price as tested: $274,615.

Best feature: Incredible handling and speed, hard-core enthusiast’s interior.

Worst feature: its eco cred is more like a PR stunt.

Target buyer: The road burner who mostly is concerned with only one type of green.

(Jason H. Harper writes about autos for Bloomberg News. The opinions expressed are his own.)

To contact the writer of this column: Jason H. Harper at Jason@JasonHharper.com.

Last Updated: November 19, 2009 00:01 EST