Bentley Motors launch all new Continental GT

A-

A+

Saturday July 19, 2003

Bentley Motors have delivered on the promise of true supercar performance with the launch of the new Continental GT. The first all-new Bentley design for over 70 years, the Continental GT is powered by a 6-litre, twin-turbocharged, W12 engine developing over 550bhp and with a top speed of 318km/h and 0-100 km/h in under five seconds, it's being billed as the world's fastest four seat coupe.

The Continental Grand Tourer was designed and engineered by Bentley at Crewe and will be manufactured there in all-new facilities.

Gizmo has followed the Bentley GT project since the first technical specs were released in mid-2002 and now the full specifications, which include six speed, paddle operation automatic transmission, four-wheel drive and the largest brakes of any car ever put into production, have been revealed.

Interior design and style

Capable of conveying four people, the cabin of the Continental GT is retains wood and leather remain as an integral part of the interior and the in-house designed seats offer a comfort with considerable front and rear travel and a multitude.

Most routine operations used frequently when the car is in motion - such as the cruise and basic music controls - can be operated directly from the steering wheel. Other functions such as the air-conditioning, navigation, computer information and more advanced entertainment features are individually controlled, but displayed on the same screen sited in the middle of the centre console.

Design

The design brief for the Continental GT was to create a car with as much room as the most spacious coup's, equip it with the performance of the world's most dynamic supercars and retain the whole within compact dimensions.

One key to maximising interior space is raising the so-called 'H' point - the position in which the driver and front passenger hips naturally sit, and which in all Bentleys is elevated above where it would be in a conventional supercar. The benefits are many: first it means the commanding driving position - another Bentley hallmark - is retained and the driver and passenger's hip to heel angle is as close to anatomical perfection as is possible. A high and upright driving position also creates more room in the back for rear seat passengers.

The result is a true two plus two, a phrase rather devalued today by being applied to cars with little more than a ledge behind the front seats. In the Continental GT it means a car capable of carrying two adults and two children in comfort for unlimited distances.

The luggage capacity of 370 litres has been achieved by placing the fuel tank under the floor rather than between the boot and rear seat.

Engine

The Continental GT is powered by a 5998cc, four camshaft, 48-valve, twin turbocharged W12 engine. Previously cited as 'in excess of 500bhp', The new GT in fact produces 552bhp (560PS) (411kW) at 6100rpm. Maximum torque is 650Nm (479lb ft) which may sound an impressive enough statistic in isolation but its true significance only become apparent when you learn that it is generated at just 1600rpm. Typically, a performance car engine will force the driver to wait until it is spinning at between 3-5000rpm before it will deliver maximum thrust; in the Continental GT it's all there at barely more than idling speed

Its exterior dimensions, for instance, make it the smallest 12-cylinder engine currently in production, despite its considerable 6-litre displacement. The block is just 513mm long, 715mm high and 710mm wide. This has been made possible entirely by its 'W' formation where instead of arranging the cylinders in two long rows as you would in a conventional V12 configuration, each bank of cylinders is actually staggered, effectively creating two V6 engines mated on a common crankshaft. The angle between the two main banks is 72deg, that between the staggered cylinders just 15deg. The result of this is an exceptionally compact motor, a trait that brings advantages in many areas. Clearly it helps hugely with weight distribution as a geographically small engine is easier to locate nearer the centre of the car. This in turn helps the overall packaging of the car and, in particular, its frontal crash performance, a crucial consideration in a Bentley which has a short front overhang as one of the main features of its design language.

The Continental GT also uses a dedicated exhaust system, using two six-into-one manifolds. Much attention has been paid not simply to ensure the exhaust provides maximum efficiency, but also that its sound is appropriate to the fastest Bentley road car in both tone and volume.

The power of the Bentley Continental GT's powertrain prompted Bentley engineers to reinforce its already substantial engine mounts with Kevlar bindings to make sure it does not move even under the most extreme circumstances.

All wheel drive power directed to all four corners

In order to ensure that the right Bentley feel is provided, Bentley's powertrain and chassis engineers have experimented extensively with the distribution of torque to the front and rear axles. This has been done to provide the Continental GT with all the security of an all-wheel drive system but when appropriate, the added fun factor inherent within a rear-wheel drive layout.

Gearbox: six speed auto

Providing the link between the driven wheels and the engine is a six-speed automatic transmission built for Bentley by ZF and the first of its type to be used in an ultra-high performance coup'. The defining characteristic of this transmission is its ability to lock its torque converter in normal driving, providing the same immediacy of response expected of manual transmissions. Despite this, shift quality is so good that often the most obvious evidence of a gearchange having taken place is the repositioning of the rev-counter needle or centre dash gear display.

Tiptronic actuation means that the car can be used either as a conventional automatic or as a clutchless manual where gear changes take place only on command from the driver, via either the gear lever or paddles mounted behind the steering wheel.

Brakes: ensuring the Continental GT stops as well as it goes

Braking will be provided by all new, ventilated and grooved disc brakes at each corner featuring the latest Bosch anti-lock system with Brake Assist and Electronic Brake Force Distribution.

Safety: prevention is even better than cure

The Continental GT is equipped with the full suite of passive safety equipment. As well as possessing exceptional front, side and rear deformation characteristics on impact, there are two front airbags, four side airbags and two side curtain bags that, unusually for a coup', run along the full length of the cabin. Seat belt pretensioners are used for all four seats.

No pricing details were available at the time of publication - check back to Gizmo.com.au for updates or follow the links below for further information.