Bentley has a brand new Continental GT coming subsequent month, however it gained’t arrive with the gas-only 8- or 12-cylinder engines seen in years previous. The fourth-generation automotive will get Bentley’s new Extremely Hybrid Efficiency powertrain, a plug-in hybrid system that delivers huge energy from a V8 mixed with an electrical motor.
The automaker claims 771 horsepower and round 738 pound-feet of torque from the electrified powertrain, saying that it’s going to make the brand new GT “probably the most highly effective and most dynamically succesful Bentley highway automotive within the firm’s 105-year historical past.” For reference, the present GT’s W12 engine produces 650 horsepower and 664 pound-feet of torque, propelling the automotive to 60 mph in 3.5 seconds. The present V8 makes 542 horsepower and 568 pound-feet of torque. Bentley didn’t give acceleration numbers for the brand new mannequin, however with greater than 100 extra horsepower and greater than 70 additional pound-feet of torque over the W12, it needs to be noticeably faster. Bentley additionally claims the Continental GT can have 50 miles of electric-only vary and carbon dioxide emissions of beneath 50 grams per kilometer.
Energy will proceed to undergo all 4 wheels together with torque vectoring and an digital limited-slip differential. Bentley may also embrace extra trick options comparable to four-wheel steering and its 48-volt digital energetic anti-roll management.
The automaker might proceed providing a fuel V8 as an entry level to the road, however hasn’t confirmed it both approach. The Continental GT contains a 3rd of Bentley’s total gross sales, with nearly 100,000 items offered in its greater than 20-year run in the marketplace. That reputation is mirrored within the variety of GT variants Bentley affords, although we don’t but understand how and the place the hybrid might be positioned within the GT catalog. Costs will probably climb a bit to begin round $250,000 and will attain the mid-$300,000 vary on the prime.