Originally twinned with the Audi A8 on the Volkswagen Group D1 platform, the Bentley Continental GT received a twin-turbocharged V8 at the 2012 North American International Auto Show in Detroit. Codenamed EA824 in Audi vernacular and EA825 for Porsche applications, the 4.0-liter V8 will be updated for MY2025.
Spied testing with minimal camouflage in Sweden, the 2025 Bentley Continental GT features a degree of electric assistance. Considering that it's twinned with the Panamera on the MSB platform, we're most likely in for a plug-in hybrid twin-turbocharged V8. Unfortunately, the mighty 6.0L twin-turbo W12 that made the Continental GT a household name is living on borrowed time.
The Dream Factory in Crewe will end W12 production this month, leaving the Audi-Porsche V8 to soldier on alone. Internally referred to as EA398, the W12 is – technically speaking – a WR12 because it combines two VR6 engines. Rather than Bentley, the W12's first application was the Audi A8 full-size luxury sedan in 2001.
Pictured with a canvas top, the black-painted Continental GTC features redesigned front and rear bumpers. The British automaker did its best to camouflage the front and rear lights, which – obviously enough – means that revised lighting signatures are on the menu for model year 2025.
The exhaust finishers are new as well. In regard to interior changes, Bentley is expected to borrow a few bits and bobs from the 2024 Porsche Panamera. It remains to be seen, however, if the British automaker can make a case for the Panamera's optional passenger-side touchscreen display.
Photo: Baldauf
Because Porsche's internal combustion-powered sedan also comes with a twin-turbo V6 and a plug-in hybrid version of said engine, Bentley could follow suit with a sixer of its own. It's hard to imagine a 2.9-liter V6 in the Continental, but on the other hand, it's not impossible. Remember the Flying Spur? Its plug-in hybrid V6 powertrain belts out 536 ponies and 553 pound-feet (750 Nm).
Porsche advertises the Panamera 4S E-Hybrid with the very same output numbers. Coincindence? Well, not quite. As for the V8-engined Panamera Turbo E-Hybrid, make that 670 horsepower and 686 pound-feet (980 Nm) of tire-shredding torque.
A punchier version has been recently confirmed by Porsche, yet we're not sure which one will be shared with the Continental GT. In any case, 670 hp and 686 lb-ft is more than the outgoing W12 has to offer. The Speed Edition 12 is rated at 650 horsepower, 664 pound-feet (900 Nm), and a rather thirsty 15 miles per gallon (15.7 liters per 100 kilometers) on the EPA's combined test cycle.
Frugality isn't exactly a priority for Continental GT customers, but performance certainly is. Panamera Turbo E-Hybrid is capable of hitting 60 miles per hour (97 kilometers per hour) in 3.0 seconds flat, onto a top speed of 196 miles per hour (315 kilometers per hour). The Conti GT has always been heavier than the Panamera, but even so, clocking 60 in 3.3-odd seconds would be tremendous. And two-tenths better than the Speed Edition 12 to boot!
After a 1:43 scale model of a Ferrari 250 GTO sparked Mircea's interest for cars when he was a kid, an early internship at Top Gear sealed his career path. He's most interested in muscle cars and American trucks, but he takes a passing interest in quirky kei cars as well. Full profile
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