Bentley Motors will launch a more powerful Continental GT Speed and the all-new Flying Spur V8 at the Geneva Motor Show.
The Continental GT has always been a torque-monster, hiding its generous overall weight behind that glorious 575 PS twin-turbo W12 engine with 700 Nm of torque. The GT Speed, with even more at its disposal – 625 PS and 800 Nm – took the performance plane even higher for the company. ‘Took’, because now there’s a new one coming, and it has that slight bit more to offer. The 2015 Continental GT Speed will deliver 635 PS and 820 Nm of dyno-busting torque from the 6.0-litre twin-turbo W12 motor. Bentley claim a top speed of 331 km/h for the coupé and 327 km/h for the convertible.
The convertible also brings in neck warmers built into the seat, a removable wind deflector and a steering wheel with heating. Key differences are the specially-designed 21” Speed alloy wheels and the ‘Speed’ badging on the front side panels.
On the greener side of the coin, Bentley will also introduce their four-door Continental, the Flying Spur, with their new, more efficient 4.0-litre twin-turbo V8. Many will see this as a sensible move, because those in want of sheer luxury and optimum performance could well do with the blown V8. Let’s face it, 507 PS and 660 Nm for two-and-a-half tonnes is not half bad. The new car brings in all the luxury goodies from its bigger-engined twin and then some. A touch-screen remote control for rear seat occupants – now up to three of them – helps keep control of things in the back entertainment and climate-wise. The visible styling differences are the red winged-B logo, front bumper grilles finished in black, and retouched exhaust pipe finishers denoting the engine under the bonnet.
We hope to see these new Bentley models joining the model range in India over the remainder of the year.
Story: Jim Gorde
Images: Bentley Press