CREWE, England – The third-generation Bentley Continental GT is here ahead of the luxuriously equipped coupe’s public debut at the upcoming Frankfurt auto show in Germany.
Described by Chairman Wolfgang Dürheimer as the most technically advanced Bentley to date, the new ’18 model is planned for North American delivery early next year prior to the planned launch of its open-top sister, the Continental GTC.
The new 2+2 coupe arrives 14 years after the resurrection of Bentley under Volkswagen Group ownership with the launch of the first-generation Continental GT. It brings a series of new developments, including an even bolder exterior design and luxurious new interior as well as a new, advanced weight-optimized platform supporting innovations such as a 48V electrical system and an upgraded version of Bentley’s uniquely configured W-12 engine offering more than 7% more power and 25% more torque in standard form than before.
“The third-generation Continental GT is the pinnacle of our design and engineering achievements. It encapsulates our desire to innovate as well as celebrate our heritage and takes the Bentley ownership experience to the next level,” Dürheimer says.
Stylistically, the new Continental GT retains many of the traditional lines that have distinguished the upmarket coupe since its addition to the Bentley lineup in 2003. They are combined with newer cues first seen on the EXP 10 Speed 6 coupe and cabriolet concept cars to give the exterior a more sculpted appearance throughout, with tauter surfacing treatment and more precisely defined feature lines.
To achieve the sharp new look, Bentley has adopted a new construction process borrowed from the aerospace industry known as super forming. It involves heating the aluminum used for the body to ultra-high temperatures in a process that allows more complex forms with tighter radii and greater depth than before, according to Crewe officials involved in the development process.
The new car’s key design signatures include a shallower but wider grille, more heavily sculptured hood, twin round matrix LED headlights and a distinct feature line that runs across the top of the front fenders and back along the length of the doors. Toward the rear, the haunches over the rear wheels become even more pronounced while the taillamps adopt the same elliptical shape as the tailpipes.
Overall, the new Bentley appears lower and broader than before, with wide tracks, a unique wheelbase and standard 21-in. alloy wheels lending it a more hunkered-down stance.
Longer, Lower Stance
Official dimensions have not yet been revealed, though Bentley describes the new Continental GT as being both longer and lower than its 189.7-in. (4,818-mm) -long, 76.7-in. (1,948-mm) -wide and 55.2 in. (1,402-mm) -high predecessor. The subtle change in external measurements is attributed partly to a new positioning of the front wheels, which now sit 5.3 ins. (135 mm) farther forward to provide for a shorter front overhang while allowing the nose to be lowered and the length of the hood to be extended in length.
This, in turn, endows the new Bentley with an even more exaggerated cab-back silhouette than before.
All exterior panels are made of aluminum with the exception of the trunklid, which is manufactured from a plastic composite material that allows it to house the new car’s antennae.
Inside, the new Bentley aims to deliver class-leading levels of luxury and craftsmanship with a cabin lavished with quilted leather, wood veneer and chromed controls. In a bid to attract younger customers, it receives more contemporary connectivity features than ever before.
The newly designed dashboard incorporates a digital instrument panel and so-called Bentley Rotating Display – a 12.3-in. (31.2-cm) center-mounted infotainment display that can be rotated back into the fascia to reveal three analog dials displaying outside temperature, a compass and chronometer or a plain wood veneer.
Each new Continental GT is trimmed in a total of nine Northern European bull hides and comes with newly developed front seats offering standard 12- or optional 20-way electronic adjustment. Bentley says the quilted diamond pattern of the upholstery took more than 18 months to develop. The dashboard also incorporates more than 107 sq.-ft. (9.9 sq.-m) of wood, according to the automaker. Laminated acoustic glass is used for the windshield and side windows for reduced exterior noise.
As part of a far-reaching reorganization at Volkswagen Group, Bentley has been made a member of the newly created Sports and Luxury Group, which also includes Porsche and Bugatti. The aim of the change is to more successfully amortize costs across the three brands in the areas of engineering, purchasing, sourcing, development, testing and servicing.
One of the first fruits of this reorganization is the decision to base the new Continental GT on a platform that employs elements of the Porsche-developed MSB (modular standard driveline architecture) platform, as used by the second-generation Panamera. It differs from the MLB (modular longitudinal architecture) platform used by the Bentley Bentayga.
The MSB structure also is more contemporary than the platform used by previous incarnations of the Continental GT, which shared their so-called Group D platform with the discontinued Volkswagen Phaeton. With a combination of high-strength steel and hot-formed aluminum, it is claimed to provide the new model with a 147.4-lb. (66.9-kg) reduction in curb weight over its 5,115-lb. (2,320’kg) predecessor together with greater rigidity, a significantly improved front-to-rear weight distribution of 55:45 compared to a previous 58:42 and a reduced center of gravity.
Bentley says these factors endow the new Continental GT with improved handling, sharper responses and greater refinement than today’s model.
No mention is made of the new model’s interior-accommodations gains in the early information released by Bentley, though the new platform is said to have added space both for front and rear seat occupants as well as contributed to more trunk space.
Launch Model Powered By 6.0L Twin-Turbo W-12
Bentley opts for a top-down strategy in terms of engine choices for its latest coupe, with the only unit available at launch being a revised version of the automaker’s uniquely configured twin-turbocharged 6.0L W-12 gasoline engine. With 626 hp at 6,000 rpm and 664 lb.-ft. (900 Nm) of torque delivered between 1,350 and 4,500rpm, it delivers 44 hp and 133 lb.-ft. (180 Nm) more than the earlier-specification W-12 in the outgoing second-generation Continental GT.
Already offered in the Bentayga, the reworked W-12 adopts a new fuel-injection system that operates at pressures between 13 psi (9.1 bar) and 441 psi (309 bar) and has revised twin-scroll turbochargers and a dual-mass flywheel to provide improved refinement, Bentley says.
As part of an upgrade to meet the latest European emissions regulations, it also features fuel-saving functions including a cylinder shut-down mechanism, or what Bentley dubs Variable Displacement, in which it switches off six cylinders on partial-throttle loads at city speeds for added fuel economy and lower carbon-dioxide output. It also incorporates a coasting function, which idles the engine at near-to-stationary speeds, as well as a stop-start mechanism.
Bentley equips its latest model with an all-new transmission. The standard 8-speed DCT replaces the previous Continental GT’s 8-speed torque-converter-equipped automatic, providing a choice between sport and comfort modes.
In combination with a dedicated launch mode and revised all-wheel-drive system that constantly varies the amount of drive to either the front or rear axle instead of the fixed 40:60 split used by the old model, the new gearbox helps send the ’18 Continental GT W12 from 0-60 mph (97 km/h) in 3.6 seconds.
This is 0.7 of a second faster than the standard version of the old Continental GT and 0.6 of a second better than the time quoted for the earlier Continental GT Speed, whose turbocharged 6.0L W-12 engine delivered the same amount of power but 590 lb.-ft. (800 Nm) less torque than the new model.
Top speed, which is achieved in sixth gear with seven and eighth gears acting as overdrive ratios for what Bentley describes as improved cruising qualities, is put at 207 mph (333 km/h). This tops the old Continental GT by 9 mph (14 km/h).
Below the W-12-powered flagship will sit the standard Continental GT model, which will retain a twin-turbocharged 4.0L V-8. However, secrecy surrounds which engine it will use. Some insiders contend the new coupé will retain the same Audi-engineered 4.0L unit used in other Bentley models. However, a high-ranking Crewe official insists the model will receive the newer 4.0L engine developed by Porsche and launched in the second-generation Panamera Turbo.
Either way, in its mildest state of tune, the new base Continental GT is expected to top the output of today’s Continental S, which offers 521 hp and 501 lb.-ft. (679 Nm) of torque.
Although the W-12 model will continue with standard all-wheel drive, the V-8 likely will be sold with the choice of either rear- or all-wheel drive, according to Bentley sources. That will mark a first for the Continental GT, which up to now has been available exclusively with all-wheel drive, irrespective of its engine.
Hybrid Version Takes Page From Porsche Panamera
Also planned, although not expected to figure in the initial lineup, is an all-wheel-drive gasoline-electric version called the Continental GT Hybrid. Again, Bentley is tight-lipped about its exact plans, but the unit is said to be a development of the system used by the Panamera 4 E-Hybrid. In the 5-door Porsche, it combines a twin-turbocharged 2.9L V-6 gasoline engine with an electric motor mounted within the front section of the automatic gearbox to provide an overall system output of 456 hp, along with 516 lb.-ft. (700 Nm) of torque.
Bentley has heavily reworked the Porsche-developed hybrid system and is expected to provide the Continental GT Hybrid with a pure-electric driving range of about 31 miles (50 km).
Bentley also has the option of introducing a diesel engine to the Continental GT for the first time in the form of the Audi-sourced twin-turbocharged 4.0L V-8 motor already used by the Bentayga. However, with the majority of global sales concentrated in the U.S. and China, a diesel model is not considered a priority by Dürheimer.
The new Continental GT is underpinned by a double-wishbone (front) and multi-link (rear) suspension. It is combined with new triple-chamber air springs, a development shared with the latest Porsche Panamera. The new setup is claimed to contain 60% more air volume than the previous model’s single-chamber air springs in a move Bentley says provides a greater range of ride characteristics.
The driver can choose between four different levels of spring stiffness via a so-called Bentley Drive Dynamics control, including Comfort, Sport, Bentley (a mode chosen to blend the best characteristics of Comfort and Sport, according to the auto maker) and Custom.
Further developments include the Bentley Dynamic Ride system, which provides active ride control by operating on the front and rear stabilizer bars, as well as a new electric-powered steering system.
Helping rein in the new Continental GT is an upgraded brake system. It consists of 16.5-in. steel discs with 10 piston calipers up front and 14.9-in. steel discs with four piston calipers at the rear. It is described as the most powerful steel brake setup ever featured on a Bentley model.
Bentley is yet to provide North American pricing details for the new Continental GT.
