New Bentley Continental GT Speed on target for 25 June reveal

Bentley has announced a date for the reveal of the next Bentley Continental GT: 25 June 2024. The car will be revealed at 4pm on that day in high-performance Speed form and the car has already broken a rather unusual speed record in an undersea tunnel.

Bentley says the new model will use its new ‘Ultra Performance Hybrid” powertrain with 771bhp and 1,000Nm of torque, derived from a V8 combustion engine and electric motors. It has also confirmed a 50-mile range on electric power alone and CO2 emissions of less than 50g/km on the WLTP combined cycle – down from 311g/km in the old W12-powered GT Speed. 

The new model will also feature active all-wheel drive with torque vectoring tech, an electronic limited-slip differential and an electronic anti-roll suspension system. Bentley has promised impressive handling from new dual-valve dampers, too.

Also to be announced on 25 June is a new underwater speed record: the Continental GT Speed has hit its 208mph top speed in the Ryfylke Tunnel in Norway, the longest undersea tunnel in the world. We can expect to see a video of the record on that day.

6

With almost 100,000 Continental GTs built in Crewe over the past 20 years, the new model has big shoes to fill as the company’s second best-selling car after the Bentayga. We’ve seen it testing before, and in official preview images from Bentley that gave us our best look yet at the new Continental GT’s design. 

These images show the new car still under camouflage, but with some new details revealed. The overall proportions are similar to before, but up front we can see a sleeker headlight design that looks similar to the new Batur’s. The front bumper looks unchanged from before, suggesting no extra cooling will be needed for the hybrid V8. 

Along the side, there’s no B-shaped vent behind the front wheel. Instead, the surfacing of that area has been styled in a way to mimic the B-shape. We can also see a new set of alloy wheels and at the rear there’s a new light shape that is thinner than before, a new bumper and a different style of dual exhaust tips. 

We’ve yet to see inside the new Bentley Continental GT, but we should see the same focus on luxury, with expensive materials used throughout and perhaps an update to its infotainment – although the rotating screen in the middle of the dash should be carried over given that it was such a statement feature on the outgoing car. 

Have a taste for the finer things? These are the best luxury cars to buy...