[Auto] Bentley Continental GT PHEV due instead of hardcore specials

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Bentley’s new 650bhp Continental GT Speed will be the hottest, most driver-focused version of the third-generation luxury coupé, company insiders have hinted.

Instead of to successors to either the 700bhp W12-engined Continental Supersport of 2017 or the V8-engined GT3-R of 2014, the development effort for the GT now turns to petrol-electric options to further broaden the GT model spectrum and drive down the average carbon emissions of Bentley’s new-car line-up.

Bentley engineering boss Matthias Rabe told Autocar that there is “some interest in an electrified GT from Bentley customers who live in metropolitan areas and will need a car capable of zero-emissions running to drive in new clear-air zones”. The company has a strategic roadmap for the total electrification of its product line by 2030, and has already introduced PHEV versions of the Bentayga SUV and the Flying Spur limousine

While a smaller-engined, less powerful PHEV could give Bentley the best chance of scoring a sub-50g/km European emissions rating, it might not be the obvious choice. Buyers in key global markets continue to favour the GT’s 12-cylinder engine over the smaller V8, and there are even some at Crewe with memories long enough to recall how poorly the BMW-engined Arnage of the late 1990s was received by customers who were quick to swap them in for 6.75-litre, Bentley-engined Red Label cars.

Meanwhile, and at the other end of the derivative spectrum, Bentley insiders have strongly hinted that no replacement for either the Continental Supersport or the GT3-R is in the product plan for the current GT model generation.

The predecessors of these derivatives came along late in the life cycle of the second-generation GT; and it can be assumed that, by the same time in the life cycle of the current-generation GT later this decade, Bentley’s pivot towards an all-electric model line-up will make hardcore petrol-engined GTs an awkward fit.