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2020 Bentley Continental GT V8 First Drive Review | 8 is the new baker's dozen

Certain objects are so well known for arriving in groups of twelve that their dodecameralism is almost presumed. This list includes eggs, donuts, roses, inches, hours, months, human ribs, days of Christmas and, correlatively, drummers drumming. We can add to that group the number of cylinders under the hood of a contemporary Bentley. Since 2003, when the venerable British brand rolled out its modern Continental GT, it has sold more than 70,000 of these models, a notable number with an inventive, twin-turbocharged 12-cylinder engine, arrayed in a W configuration. Unfortunately, the flying-B brand has been having some difficulty meeting certification requirements for its alluring, all-new, 12-cylinder-equipped Continental GT coupe and convertible, which have yet to appear in the States, despite a full two years having lapsed since their unveiling. Fortunately, to stem the tide of demand, the crew from Crewe has certified a version of the Porsche-designed 542-horsepower, 568 pound-feet 4.0-liter, twin-turbo V8 from the Panamera for use in their new two-door, backed up by an eight-speed dual-clutch transmission. It will be available for purchase here, this fall — before it is offered to any other market — by those with 220,000 spare dollars. Even more fortunate, we just had the chance to drive it through the coastal, mountainous and curvy vineyard regions of Northern California, and we can assure you that, while we still believe Bentley GTs deserve twelve cylinders, eight is the new baker's dozen. Unless you've spent extended time piloting the Continental GT W12 through some of the most beautiful mountainous regions of Europe and America, as we have, you might not notice the one-third reduction in cylinders, or the 84-horsepower depreciation in output. According to Bentley, the less powerful but lighter motor adds only 0.2 seconds to the 0-60 run (3.8 versus 3.6 for the coupe, 3.9 versus 3.7 for the convertible) not enough of a differential to tip our own internal accelerometer. It also foregoes cresting 200 mph like its bigger brother can, not that there's anywhere you can hit these speeds safely in America anyway. The V8 also, as referenced above, subtracts a couple hundred pounds from the total weight of the GT, not that this matters all that much in a vehicle that weighs 2.5 tons, but it does take a modicum of gravitational pressure off the front axle. Is it noticeable on first blush?

Bentley may develop 500-hp, all-electric sports car

At dinner during the recent press launch for the Bentley Bentayga, CEO Wolfgang Durheimer stood up to discuss potential directions for the Bentley brand. One of them could be an all-electric version of the EXP 10 Speed 6 concept first revealed at the 2015 Geneva Motor Show, Top Gear reports. According to Durheimer, the Speed 6 concept has received incredible customer response, summed up as, "Stop talking about it and build it." Yet the CEO says Bentley would want to do something even more interesting with the coupe, so an electric powertrain with anywhere from 400 to 500 horsepower is being developed. That's not to say we'll ever see it for sale, but the best minds in the company are working on it. Top Gear says that such a car would probably share innovations developed for the rather lovely Porsche Mission E concept we saw at Frankfurt, resulting in a range of around 300 miles and fast charging capability. Traditional engines would also be developed for those that prefer their Bentleys to play four-stroke combustion notes. The other direction - and if we're wagering we think this one is much more likely - would use the Bentayga platform but be a sharper, edgier take on a crossover. At that same dinner, Durheimer said response to the Bentayga has urged Bentley to increase its sales projections. That makes an even stronger case for the smaller crossover already being considered in January this year and reaffirmed in June. Top Gear thinks that would be an "SUV-coupe" with four doors and more performance. Whichever one gets the nod, it's expected to hit the road in the next three years. Related Video: Featured Gallery Bentley EXP 10 Speed 6 Concept: Geneva 2015 View 9 Photos News Source: Top GearImage Credit: Copyright 2015 Drew Phillips / AOL Green Rumormill Bentley Coupe Concept Cars Electric Future Vehicles Luxury Performance bentley bentayga wolfgang durheimer porsche mission e concept bentley crossover bentley exp 10 speed 6

Salvage team boards burnt ship Felicity Ace off Azores, towing begins

LISBON — More than a week after a ship packed with around 4,000 vehicles, including Porsches, Audis, Lamborghinis and Bentleys, caught fire in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean, a salvage team managed to board the vessel on Friday and started to tow it to a safe location off the Portuguese Azores archipelago. In a statement, ship manager Mitsui O.S.K. Lines Ltd (MOL) said the Felicity Ace remained stable, and the smoke that for days billowed from the vessel, adrift around 170 km southwest of the Azores, had stopped. The 22 crew members of the Panama-flagged Felicity Ace, which was carrying around 4,000 vehicles including Porsches, Audis and Bentleys from Germany to the United States, were evacuated last Wednesday, the day the fire broke out. Some of the vehicles are electric and their lithium-ion batteries have made the fire very difficult to extinguish, port officials have said. Previous attempts to board the ship to assess its condition and start preparing it for towing had failed due to the fire and rough seas. On Friday, the team was able to board by helicopter and the salvage boat Bear started towing the vessel to a "safe area off Azores," the ship manager said. It was not clear where exactly the vessel was being towed to. It was being escorted by two tug boats and another salvage craft equipped with firefighting gear, MOL said. Related video: Image Credit: Portuguese Navy (Marinha Portuguesa) via Reuters Green Weird Car News Audi Bentley Lamborghini Porsche Electric fire car fire shipping cargo ship