AutoblogGreen

Bentley Continental GT V8 hits 24 mpg highway

Autoblog Staff — Mon, 14 May 2012 08:00:00 EST

Filed under: MPG, Bentley

Let's get this off our chests right off the bat: There's nothing truly efficient about the Bentley Continental GT. That said, we're at least pleased to see that the marque has decided to outfit its luxurious supercar with a smaller and more fuel efficient engine option.

The Bently Continental GT with the W12 is rated at 12 city/19 highway on traditional premium, 8 city/14 highway on E85, and easily less than that on an excited right foot. When we drove the Continental GT V8 at launch we were told that official EPA mileage could be rated as high was 24 mpg on the highway, and that, even with the right-foot factor, would be a generous improvement over the W12 for sacrificing just 67 horsepower and almost nothing in performance. It turns out Bentley told the truth, the official EPA numbers are 15 city/24 highway.

According to FuelEconomy.gov, the 12 combined mpg of the W12 is raised to 15 combined with the V8. Better yet, drivers will save $1,000 on premium unleaded every year, the V8 needing $3,400 worth of the explosive liquid, the W12 needing $4,300. On top of the fact that the V8 is roughly $18,000 less than the W12, with those annual savings you'll be able to add a couple more ties to your collection every year, or one bespoke shoe. Start with the right foot - that's where the action is.

Bentley Continental GT V8 hits 24 mpg highway originally appeared on AutoblogGreen on Mon, 14 May 2012 08:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Bentley aims to sell 3K SUVs annually... including plug-in hybrid version

Autoblog Staff — Tue, 01 May 2012 08:01:00 EST

Filed under: EV/Plug-in, Hybrid, Bentley

If you want a top-of-the-line SUV with serious performance capabilities, look no further than the Volkswagen Group. Its Porsche unit has had tremendous success with the Cayenne, a vehicle that has doubled its sales all on its own - and that's not even accounting for the Volkswagen Touareg or Audi Q7 that share some of its underpinnings. Keen to capitalize on that success, the German auto giant is overseeing the application of the same formula to two of its other divisions: Lamborghini, which just unveiled its new Urus concept, and Bentley, which is working on an SUV of its own.

The British marque has been showcasing the EXP 9 F concept to preview what it has in store. It only hinted at powertrain possibilities upon its unveiling at the Geneva Motor Show, but at the Beijing Motor Show, it got ever so slightly more specific. Like the Continental range, the production version of the Bentley sport-ute would pack a 600-horsepower, 6.0-liter twin-turbo W12, but offer the (relatively) more sensible 500hp, 4.0L twin-turbo V8 as well. The bigger news, however, is the V6 plug-in hybrid option which Bentley is planning for its SUV, enabling it to travel up to 30 kilometers (18.6 miles) on electric-only mode, while rocketing to 100 km/h (62 mph) in less than five seconds.

Bentley projects the variety of powertrain options will help it sell 3,000 units of the vehicle once it enters production in 2015 - the same figures sister-company Lamborghini is projecting for the Urus. To put that into context, consider that Bentley sold just over 7,000 vehicles (from its current Continental and Mulsanne lines) around the world last year. That's still a far cry from the number of Cayennes that Porsche churns out - it delivered nearly 13,000 of them in the United States alone last year - but then the EXP 9 F is expected to carry a price tag north of $200,000 (double the price of even the most expensive Cayenne Turbo) while sharing common components to make its first entrance into SUV market a lucrative one for the Flying B brand.

Scope out the fresh high-resolution images we've added to the gallery above for another look at the EXP 9 F (which is still expected to look different by the time it comes to production), and scroll down for the press release containing powertrain information.

Continue reading Bentley aims to sell 3K SUVs annually... including plug-in hybrid version

Bentley aims to sell 3K SUVs annually... including plug-in hybrid version originally appeared on AutoblogGreen on Tue, 01 May 2012 08:01:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Bentley can do better than the EXP 9 F Concept

Damon Lavrinc — Tue, 06 Mar 2012 16:02:00 EST

Filed under: EV/Plug-in, Hybrid, Bentley, Geneva Motor Show

Bentley has been hinting at the possibility of a full-size ultra-luxury SUV for a few years and here in Geneva the rumors finally became reality in all their awkwardly majestic glory.

Just as awkward is the 'ute concept's name: the EXP 9 F, which is about as imaginative and puzzling as its styling. If you were to task a sophomore Photoshop wizard to digitally create a Bentley SUV, this would be the result. And that's probably the most disappointing aspect of the EXP 9 F - its utter predictability.

Grabbing bits from the Mulsanne and Continental range, mounting them up front, raising the ride height and then adding a liftback hatch is the easy way out. Same for the interior, which takes Bentley's bespoke aesthetic and gives it the Big Gulp treatment. Maybe we're too plebeian, but for this ute's target demographic, it just doesn't carry the gravitas you'd expect of something this large wearing the Flying B.

The same applies to the drivetrain, which utilizes the 6.0-liter W12 that's been doing duty in the Continental for years. The only interesting propulsion proposition is the possible fitment of Bentley's new V8, augmented with an electric motor and battery pack to make the world's largest and least efficient plug-in hybrid.

It's just bad on all sides, so like the Aston Martin Lagonda concept before it, we're hoping Bentley sees the light, heads back to the drawing board and comes up with something befitting of such a storied marque. Just after it quietly pulls it off the show stand, just like Aston did two years ago.

Continue reading Bentley can do better than the EXP 9 F Concept

Bentley can do better than the EXP 9 F Concept originally appeared on AutoblogGreen on Tue, 06 Mar 2012 16:02:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Bentley checks out VW for potential plug-in hybrid powertrain technology

Danny King — Tue, 24 Jan 2012 07:52:00 EST

Filed under: EV/Plug-in, Hybrid, Bentley, Volkswagen

And now, a little bit of news for that huge contingent of people known as Bentley-driving tree huggers.

The ultra-luxury automaker is looking at how Volkswagen is making hybrid powertrains and may add a plug-in hybrid option to future models, UK-based Autocar reported, citing an interview with Bentley engineering chief Rolf Frech.

Bentley is more apt to look at new powertrains now that former Porsche executive Wolfgang Durhemier is running the company, Autocar said. Frech noted that, in addition to boosting fuel economy, electric-drive powertrains are appropriate for Bentley because of the high torque that electric motors provide.

There'd sure be plenty of room for fuel-economy improvements when it comes to a potential electric-drive powertrain in a Bentley. Last February, the nonprofit American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy (ACEEE) put together its annual list of "greenest" and "meanest" U.S. production vehicles when it came to environmental impact. Bentley managed to get two cars onto the list - the Bentley Mulsanne and the Bentley Continental GTC. Both V8-powered cars got an EPA-rated 13 miles per gallon combined. The only "meaner" non-SUV or non-truck on the ACEEE list was the Bugatti's 16-cylinder Veyron.

Bentley checks out VW for potential plug-in hybrid powertrain technology originally appeared on AutoblogGreen on Tue, 24 Jan 2012 07:52:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Bentley CEO confirms some sort of plug-in hybrid, someday

Eric Loveday — Mon, 29 Aug 2011 17:54:00 EST

Filed under: EV/Plug-in, Hybrid, Bentley

Sometimes, things just don't change. For example, the CEO of Bentley, Wolfgang Durheimer, has confirmed that the company will continue to offer 12-cylinder engines; so much so that they, "become one of the cornerstones" of Bentley. This should ease fears that the upcoming turbocharged 4.0-liter V8 would make extinct Bentley's infamous W12.

But, and here's a bit of a twist, Durheimer said he realizes consumers are becoming more environmentally conscious, so the automaker plans to eventually equip a vehicle with a plug-in hybrid powertrain that uses technology borrowed from Volkswagen. Details weren't released, but Durheimer hinted the plug-in hybrid will have an electric-only range of between 16 and 19 miles. Finally, Bentley is still considering diesel engines, but says it won't offer an oil-burning mill until the level of refinement reaches gasoline-fueled engines. Looks like the "Bentley going green" meme might have legs as long as the company's 12 cylinder engines.

Bentley CEO confirms some sort of plug-in hybrid, someday originally appeared on AutoblogGreen on Mon, 29 Aug 2011 17:54:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Bentley adding hybrids and/or diesels soon?

Eric Loveday — Mon, 15 Aug 2011 17:57:00 EST

Filed under: Diesel, Hybrid, Bentley

Some rumors seem to never die. Take, for example, the rumor that Bentley will, at some point, offer an alternative fuel vehicle.

First it was thought that Bentley would some day wheel out a hydrogen fuel cell vehicle. Well, that never panned out. So, next came rumors that the luxury automaker was testing out some sort of hybrid vehicle. That gas-electric Bentley was rumored to launch in 2011. Needless to say, a production hybrid Bentley does not exist. However, it's still rumored that future Bentleys will employ hybrid technology, but we're not so sure that a gas-electric Bentley will show up soon.

Apparently, Bentley has now turned its attention to diesel. Word is the luxury automaker is working on an SUV that will make use of Audi's V12 TDI engine. Bentley reckons that 738 pound-feet of torque will be required to move this monster SUV and says that level of torque can be extracted from the V12 TDI. Reports say that, if Volkswagen gives Bentley's SUV the production green light, then it will hit the scene in 2014. The sport-ute will reportedly slot in between the Continental and Mulsanne, giving it a price tag in the neighborhood of $230,000.

Bentley adding hybrids and/or diesels soon? originally appeared on AutoblogGreen on Mon, 15 Aug 2011 17:57:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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2011 Bentley Continental GT to get new V8 with 40% lower CO2 emissions

Sam Abuelsamid — Tue, 07 Sep 2010 13:01:00 EST

Filed under: Ethanol, MPG, Bentley

2011 Bentley Continental GT - Click above for high-res image gallery

Last year, Bentley took its first tentative step toward reducing the CO2 emissions from its high-powered luxury vehicle lineup with the introduction of the E85-capable flex-fuel Continental Supersports. While few, if even one, of those cars are ever likely to be fueled with ethanol, Bentley has now unveiled a second-generation Continental GT coupe that gets more serious about fuel savings.

Ever since the original Continental debuted as a 2003 model, it has been powered by a 552 horsepower twin-turbocharged 6.0-liter W12 engine. While an updated version of that power-plant carries over into the new 2011 model, the Continental is also downsizing with an available 4.0-liter V8. The only information provided so far by Bentley about the new engine is that emissions will be reduced by 40 percent compared to the W12 and that it will lead the luxury performance class with its CO2 emissions-to-power ratio. Since Bentley is part of the Volkswagen Group, it's probably safe to assume that the new V8 will feature direct injection and turbocharging with output approaching 500 hp. The 2010 Continental is rated at 13 miles per gallon combined by the EPA so the new V8 should get at least 18 mpg. This is still super thirsty, but it is a huge improvement.

[Source: Bentley]

Continue reading 2011 Bentley Continental GT to get new V8 with 40% lower CO2 emissions

2011 Bentley Continental GT to get new V8 with 40% lower CO2 emissions originally appeared on AutoblogGreen on Tue, 07 Sep 2010 13:01:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Rendered Speculation: Might Bentley consider an Aston Martin Cygnet competitor?

Jeremy Korzeniewski — Wed, 24 Mar 2010 11:59:00 EST

Filed under: MPG, Bentley, Lightweight

Could the Aston Martin Cygnet kick off a trend? That is, might other historic luxury and performance marques - say... like Bentley, for example - choose to follow in the path of environmental friendship by offering a suitably small and well-appointed city car to offset their gas-buzzling behemoths? What's next, Porsche building SUVs? Oh, wait.

In reality, there isn't any real indication that Bentley will ape the Cygnet idea and offer a city car. But if it did, might it look anything like this rendered bit of speculation from the boys at Autoblog.nl (no relation)? We sure hope not. Besides looking vaguely Citroen-ish, this so-called Bentley Barnato looks even less congruous with the automaker's overall lineup than the aforementioned Aston Martin Cygnet.

That said, we certainly wouldn't be shocked to see automakers like Bentley follow Aston Martin's lead in producing small, luxury city cars. After all, looming carbon emissions and fuel economy requirements will take drastic measures to meet, and offering a new line of small cars may be preferable to making wholesale design philosophy changes to the tried-and-true (and profitable) luxury saloon formula. We'll see.

[Source: Autoblog.nl]

Rendered Speculation: Might Bentley consider an Aston Martin Cygnet competitor? originally appeared on AutoblogGreen on Wed, 24 Mar 2010 11:59:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Report: All Bentley Continental models going flex-fuel in June

Jeremy Korzeniewski — Sat, 13 Mar 2010 08:52:00 EST

Filed under: Ethanol, Flex-Fuel, Bentley

2010 Bentley Continental Supersports - Click above for high-res image gallery

It may not be the most interesting news you read all week, but we now have a date at which all Bentley Continentals will be able to gulp down whiskey with the best of 'em: June. Well, not exactly whiskey, but ethanol's pretty close. Bentley had made the announcement (sans date) at the Geneva Motor Show when it showed off the Continental Supersports Convertible.

Bentley sees this move as a big first step in reaching its stated goal of offering an entirely biofuel-capable lineup by 2012. In its latest form, Bentley's twin-turbocharged 6.0-liter W12 offers up 621 horsepower and 590 pound-feet of torque. That's sufficient to push the big Conti' to 60 miles per hour in 3.9 seconds and on up to a top speed of 202 mph.

As the Continental is Bentley's most popular model line by far, this means that over half of all cars the luxury brand sells this year will be flex-fuel models. For those keeping track, the Brooklands coupe (which will soon be discontinued), Azure sedan and the soon-to-be-released Mulsanne sedan (the replacement for the long-running Arnage) are still not yet biofuel capable. According to Automotive News, the Mulsanne will be E85-capable shortly after its launch later this year.

[Source: Automotive News - Sub. Req'd]

Report: All Bentley Continental models going flex-fuel in June originally appeared on AutoblogGreen on Sat, 13 Mar 2010 08:52:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Geneva Preview: Bentley Supersports Convertible, all Continentals get E85 compatibility

Sam Abuelsamid — Mon, 22 Feb 2010 09:02:00 EST

Filed under: Ethanol, Flex-Fuel, Bentley, Geneva Motor Show

Bentley Continental Supersports convertible - Click above for high-res image gallery

A year ago at the Geneva Motor Show, Bentley took its first tentative step toward being ever-so-slightly greener with the introduction of the Continental Supersports coupe. The Supersports was a lightweight, higher-powered version of the Continental GT that was the first in the range to offer flex-fuel E85 compatibility. After several months on the market now, Bentley is adding a convertible version of the Supersports next week in Geneva.

Bentley has also announced that, as of this June, all Continental models in all markets will get flex-fuel capability as standard equipment. Like other automakers, the flex-fuel capability includes a fuel sensor to detect the E85 concentration and adjust the engine mapping on the fly. Bentley claims a CO2 reduction of up 70 percent well to wheel (depending on the type of feedstock used to produce the ethanol).

The 621 horsepower twin-turbo W12 can push the Supersports convertible to 60 mph in just 3.9 seconds. Like the coupe introduced last year, the convertible has gone on a diet, yielding a savings of 198 pounds compared to a Continental GTC Speed

Gallery: Bentley Continental Supersports Convertible

[Source: Bentley]

Continue reading Geneva Preview: Bentley Supersports Convertible, all Continentals get E85 compatibility

Geneva Preview: Bentley Supersports Convertible, all Continentals get E85 compatibility originally appeared on AutoblogGreen on Mon, 22 Feb 2010 09:02:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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REPORT: Bentley considers going hybrid, rules out hydrogen

Jeremy Korzeniewski — Wed, 07 Oct 2009 08:54:00 EST

Filed under: Hybrid, Bentley, Lightweight

Bentley Continental Supersports - Click above for high-res image gallery

Bentley is on a mission to lower fuel consumption and carbon emissions. According to Auto Express, once the firm's Continental Supersports hits the market (and, we may add, after it actually becomes flex-fuel capable), the next step in the green train may very well be hybrids.

To reach that conclusion, AE uses the process of elimination. Here's the reasoning: diesels don't historically sell well here in the United States, Bentley's largest market, so an oil-burner is out. Bentley has reportedly already ruled out hydrogen fuel cells, which aren't expected to make any sort of dent in the marketplace at all until about 2015. That leaves biofuels and hybrids, which the automaker is already rumored to be testing.

If there's any truth to the report, its possible that the next Continental for the 2011 model year will feature a flex-fuel hybrid powertrain and a relatively lightweight aluminum body to reduce carbon emissions from today's 396 g/km to less than 225 g/km. Not amazing or anything, but certainly moving in the right direction.

[Source: Auto Express]

REPORT: Bentley considers going hybrid, rules out hydrogen originally appeared on AutoblogGreen on Wed, 07 Oct 2009 08:54:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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REPORT: Bentley to delay flex-fuel capability for 2010 Continental Supersports

Jeremy Korzeniewski — Tue, 06 Oct 2009 14:03:00 EST

Filed under: Ethanol, Flex-Fuel, Bentley, USA

Bentley Continental Supersports - Click above for high-res image gallery

While the environmental merits of any 621 horsepower, twelve-cylinder behemoth that's capable of traveling at speeds of up to 204 miles per hour are, at the very least, debatable, Bentley hasn't exactly been shy about touting the green angle of its upcoming 2010 Continental Supersports.

Add one more black mark to the car's eco credibility now that word comes from Green Car Advisor that U.S. laws and "engineering challenges" - including the fitment of hardened valve seats in Bentley's W12 engine - mean that the first 200 Supersports imported to the United States won't actually be flex-fuel capable.

Ah well, somehow we doubt that buyers willing to plonk down the $267,000 it takes to park a twin-turbocharged Continental Supersports in their driveway will be all that concerned with pumping ethanol in the tank.

[Source: Green Car Advisor]

REPORT: Bentley to delay flex-fuel capability for 2010 Continental Supersports originally appeared on AutoblogGreen on Tue, 06 Oct 2009 14:03:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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REPORT: New Grand Bentley will feature cylinder deactivation

Sam Abuelsamid — Mon, 27 Jul 2009 10:09:00 EST

Filed under: MPG, Bentley

The New Grand Bentley - Click above to enlarge

The new Grand Bentley replacement for the Arnage will be making its world-wide debut in just a few weeks at the Pebble Beach Concours. Like every other upcoming model from the classic British luxury brand, it will be adopting technology to help reduce fuel consumption and carbon dioxide emissions. Automotive News is reporting that the Grand Bentley will be the first model from the brand to use cylinder deactivation to reduce the number of active cylinders under light load conditions. Currently, this fuel-saving concept is used in production vehicles by a number automakers - including General Motors, Chrysler, Daimler, and Honda. It is unknown if the new car will also have flex-fuel capability like the Continental SuperSports that debuted at Geneva.

[Source: Automotive News (subs req'd)]

REPORT: New Grand Bentley will feature cylinder deactivation originally appeared on AutoblogGreen on Mon, 27 Jul 2009 10:09:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Derek Bell runs the Bentley Continental Supersports at Goodwood [w/VIDEO]

Sam Abuelsamid — Wed, 15 Jul 2009 15:43:00 EST

Filed under: Ethanol, Flex-Fuel, Bentley

Bentley Continental Supersports - click above for a high res image gallery

At the Geneva Motor Show in March, Bentley unveiled its fastest most powerful road car in its 90 year history in the form of the Continental Supersports. Besides significantly reducing the weight of the existing Continental GT, the Supersports marked the first step of Bentley's move reduce its CO₂ emissions, in this case through the use of ethanol as a fuel. The Supersports is the first flex-fuel vehicle from the British luxury marque. At the recent Goodwood Festival of Speed, Bentley brought out a prototype and let multiple Le Mans winning driver Derek Bell spend the weekend ferrying lucky passengers up the hillclimb course at elevated speeds. Bentley has provided a gallery of photos and video that you can check out after the jump. Did we mention these passengers were lucky?

Gallery: Goodwood 2009: Bentley Continental Supersports

[Source: Bentley]

Continue reading Derek Bell runs the Bentley Continental Supersports at Goodwood [w/VIDEO]

Derek Bell runs the Bentley Continental Supersports at Goodwood [w/VIDEO] originally appeared on AutoblogGreen on Wed, 15 Jul 2009 15:43:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Spy Shots: Is Bentley testing a hybrid Continental GT?

Sam Abuelsamid — Sun, 07 Jun 2009 11:01:00 EST

Filed under: Hybrid, Bentley

Bentley CEO Franz-Josef Paefgen has repeatedly said in the past that the British luxury marque will introduce lower CO₂-emitting powertrains over the next several years, starting with the flex-fuel W12 in the Continental Supersports this fall. As part of the Volkswagen Group, Bentley is likely to follow some of the same powertrain paths as the rest of the group (i.e., diesel). However, it's likely that hybrids will be part of the picture as well.

Speaking of pictures, some new spy photos have turned up of a Continental GT running somewhere in southern Europe. The new shots may indicate that Bentley is already working on a hybrid Continental. Lots of unusual gear is visible through the back window and the photographer claims the car was running very quietly, a signal that may point to a hybrid running in EV mode.

If the Bentley is a hybrid, it's probably using the same system developed by VW, Audi and Porsche that will be appearing in the Touareg, Q5, Cayenne and Panamera in the next couple of years. Thanks to Andrus for the tip!

[Source: FastestCar.com]

Spy Shots: Is Bentley testing a hybrid Continental GT? originally appeared on AutoblogGreen on Sun, 07 Jun 2009 11:01:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Bentley guarantees Continental is 85% recyclable

Jeremy Korzeniewski — Thu, 14 May 2009 18:39:00 EST

Filed under: Etc., Bentley

Bentley Recycling Certificate - Click above to enlarge

Good news for all the Bentley Continental owners who plan to recycle their uber expensive and luxurious automobiles after they have outlived their usefulness: Bentley now guarantees that the Continental line is 85% recyclable and 95% recoverable. In recognition of this fact, the premium automaker has been awarded an official certificate from the German Motor Transport Authority. According to Dr. Arno Homburg, head of Whole Vehicle Development at Bentley Motors:

"Our environment policy is based on sustainable principles and we take a holistic view of the whole process. At the design stage we consider the environmental impact of all components over the entire life of the car. This is despite the fact that over 70% of all Bentleys ever produced are still in existence - our cars tend to end up as collectors' items rather than scrap."

We'd tend to agree that most Bentleys are unlikely to ever be sold for scrap, but the recycling certificate means that if that unthinkable deed ever does happen, the various bits of metal, plastic, glass and the like can be reused in any number of industries. Who knows, your old, unwanted Bentley could come back to life as the world's finest toaster oven... or a laptop computer, or some luggage.

[Source: Bentley]

Continue reading Bentley guarantees Continental is 85% recyclable

Bentley guarantees Continental is 85% recyclable originally appeared on AutoblogGreen on Thu, 14 May 2009 18:39:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Spy shots: Bentley gets ready to run the 'Ring in the E85 Continental Supersports

Sam Abuelsamid — Wed, 13 May 2009 10:25:00 EST

Filed under: Ethanol, Flex-Fuel, Bentley, Spy Shots

At the Geneva Motor Show in March, Bentley unveiled its first-ever flex-fuel car, the Continental Supersports. Not only is this car the first production Bentley that will be capable of running on either gasoline of E85 ethanol, it also happens to be the most powerful production Bentley ever, putting out a staggering 621 horsepower.

Running on ethanol is the first stage of Bentley's plan to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, at least when measured on a well-to-wheel basis. Before Bentley puts its new flex fuel, reduced-mass coupe on sale around the end of this year, though, it has some testing left to do. To that end, the engineers are hitting the Nurburgring this week to see how it does in what's quickly becoming the new standard test for high performance vehicles, and these spy shots show a matte black Supersports getting ready for this baptism of fire.

[Source: Motor Trend]
Photos Copyright (C)2009 Sam Abuelsamid / Weblogs, Inc.

Spy shots: Bentley gets ready to run the 'Ring in the E85 Continental Supersports originally appeared on AutoblogGreen on Wed, 13 May 2009 10:25:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Bentleys to lose weight, possibly add diesel and PHEV to flex-fuel

Sam Abuelsamid — Wed, 11 Mar 2009 15:40:00 EST

Filed under: Diesel, EV/Plug-in, Hybrid, Bentley, Lightweight

Click above for a high-res gallery of the 2010 Bentley Continental Supersports

As Bentley works on the next generation of its "mainstream" Continental models in the next few years, new powertrains and weight reduction will be part of the program. At the Geneva Motor Show last week, CEO Franz-Josef Paefgen announced that an all-new powertrain would appear in Bentleys by 2012, but didn't give any indication as to the nature of it. Since Bentley is part of the Volkswagen group, diesel would be an obvious choice with its high torque being a good match for the big British luxury machines. All of the current Continental variants are powered by a twin-turbo W12 with VW roots.

Another option would be some sort of plug-in hybrid. The high price of Bentleys could more easily absorb the cost of batteries and hybrid hardware. The hybrid system being developed within VW and Porsche is modular enough that it could be adapted to the larger vehicles. Adding plug-in capability with a lithium ion battery could allow the Continental to operate in silently at lower speeds on electricity.

The Continental SuperSports that debuted in Geneva actually started as weight reduction project before flex-fuel capability was added to the engine. The next gen Continental is expected to drop about 400 lbs through increased aluminum and high strength steel.

Gallery: Bentley Continental Supersports

[Source: Automobile]

Bentleys to lose weight, possibly add diesel and PHEV to flex-fuel originally appeared on AutoblogGreen on Wed, 11 Mar 2009 15:40:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Geneva 2009: Bentley goes flex-fuel, new powertrain in 2012

Sam Abuelsamid — Tue, 03 Mar 2009 05:19:00 EST

Filed under: Ethanol, Flex-Fuel, Hybrid, Bentley, Geneva Motor Show

Click above for a high-res gallery of the 2010 Bentley Continental Supersports

Bentley CEO Franz-Josef Paefgen promised an all-new more efficient powertrain for his lineup in 2012 but declined to give details. In the meantime, he acknowledged that bio-ethanol is an important stepping stone to a greener future as is lighter weight. To that end Bentley introduced its latest model today in Geneva, a project that started 24 months ago as an exercise in mass reduction. That part of the effort yielded savings of 242 lbs off the portly Continental coupe.

Under the hood the usual flex-fuel bits have been added to the twin turbo W12 bringing the output up to a massive 621 hp. That's enough to push the Continental Supersports to 204 mph. Although Paefgen didn't say what the new 2012 powerplant would be he did mention that he didn't feel that plug-in hybrids would make a significant impact on the market for at least 5-10 years. Plug-in hybrid technology is being developed elsewhere in the Volkswagen group and it would make sense to apply it to luxury vehicles like Bentleys allowing them to silently cruise around town, while still having massive performance when desired.

Gallery: Geneva 2009: Bentley Continental Supersports

Continue reading Geneva 2009: Bentley goes flex-fuel, new powertrain in 2012

Geneva 2009: Bentley goes flex-fuel, new powertrain in 2012 originally appeared on AutoblogGreen on Tue, 03 Mar 2009 05:19:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Geneva Preview: Bentley Continental Supersports, 621 hp ethanol beast

Sam Abuelsamid — Wed, 25 Feb 2009 10:29:00 EST

Filed under: Flex-Fuel, Bentley, Geneva Motor Show, Lightweight

Click above for a high-res gallery of the Bentley Continental Supersports

In spite of being part of the Volkswagen Group, Bentley has opted to not go the diesel route in its efforts to reduce carbon dioxide emissions. Instead, the Continental Supersports becomes the most powerful Bentley ever through the use of E85 as a fuel. Bentley has added flex fuel capability to the twin turbocharged 6.0L W12 to increase the output from the 600 hp of the current Continental GT Speed to 621 hp. Torque output is increased from 553 lb-ft to 590 lb-ft.

Also contributing to the improved acceleration 0-60 acceleration of 3.7 seconds is a 242 lb reduction in weight. In fact, the Supersports project began primarily as an investigation into reducing the mass of the nearly 5,200 lb Continental coupe. If this car is actually run on E85, the net well-to-wheel emissions of CO₂ will certainly be reduced compared to running it on gasoline, but this car is by no means green. If Bentley is really serious about reducing fuel consumption and CO₂ emissions, the company would be pursuing more aggressive changes than simply going flex-fuel. Within the group, there is work happening on electrification and hybridization, technologies that could be applied to a car like the Continental.

The Continental Supersports goes on sale this fall with most countries getting flex-fuel capability at launch. American examples get the E85 capability in 2010.

[Source: Bentley]

Continue reading Geneva Preview: Bentley Continental Supersports, 621 hp ethanol beast

Geneva Preview: Bentley Continental Supersports, 621 hp ethanol beast originally appeared on AutoblogGreen on Wed, 25 Feb 2009 10:29:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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