2005 Bentley Continental Gt Coupe, Spotless, 38k Miles, Dark Sapphire. on 2040-cars

Auto blog

2019 Bentley Continental GT gets stunning new looks but keeps its W12 engine

The Continental GT is an incredibly important model for Bentley, having kicked off the British luxury brand's current resurgence. To wit, in 2003, the year the Continental GT was introduced, Bentley sold around a thousand vehicles. Just a decade later, Bentley was selling 10 times that many cars. You can be sure that the automaker doesn't want that explosive growth to slow down, and the new 2019 Continental GT you see here looks certain to keep customers flowing into Bentley dealerships for the foreseeable future. If you were expecting lots of technology in this new Continental, you'll find it front and center in the cockpit. There's a fully digital dash that mimics conventional gauges on either side of a configurable screen, but the real showstopper is the 12.3-inch Rotating Display. When the car is turned off, the infotainment screen spins to hide behind a wooden veneer – just a small part of the 107 square feet of wood inside – but that's not its only trick. In addition to the LCD screen, there's a third mode festooned with a temperature gauge, compass, and chronometer. The rest of the cabin is suitably opulent. There's diamond-stitched leather, a watch-like machined finish called Cotes de Geneve, diamond knurling, and bronze inserts in between the primary controls. 20-way power adjustable seats are heated, cooled, and massaging, and in-seat Active Bass Transducers are optional. A 6.0-liter W12 engine sends 626 horsepower and 664 pound-feet of torque to all four wheels through an eight-speed automatic transmission. The run to 60 takes just 3.6 seconds, and the top speed is listed at 207 miles per hour. If you were expecting some sort of electrification, you'll have to look elsewhere. A 48-volt electronics system with actuators to help keep the big coupe planted during corners is borrowed from corporate cousins Audi, as do LED Matrix headlights. We'll see the 2019 Continental GT in person at the Frankfurt Motor Show. Pricing has yet to be announced, but we'd expect it to be slightly higher than the $200,000 asking price of the current model. Featured Gallery 2019 Bentley Continental GT View 28 Photos Frankfurt Motor Show Bentley Coupe Luxury Performance

Volkswagen posts quarterly profit despite drop in sales

Volkswagen returned to profit in the third quarter as surging Chinese demand for luxury cars helped offset a 1.1% drop in vehicle deliveries due to the pandemic, sending its shares as much as 3% higher on Thursday. The German automaker's return to the black comes amid spiking coronavirus cases in Europe that led governments in France and Germany to order their countries back into strict national lockdowns on Wednesday. "The coronavirus remains a central problem," Volkswagen Chief Financial Officer Frank Witter said in a conference call with reporters. "This situation now is anything but relaxed." But Witter said the group expected the economic recovery to continue and did "not anticipate any nationwide lockdowns in larger markets." Witter said the takeover of U.S. truck maker Navistar International by Volkswagen's trucking unit Traton was an important acquisition, but the "current economic climate will not make this easy." Volkswagen reiterated it expects to post a profit for the full year, saying its business "recovered noticeably" in the third quarter as sales in China of premium vehicles, including Audi and Porsche sports cars, rose 3%. The quarterly performance was also aided by a series of cost-cutting measures launched earlier this year. Volkswagen said its net liquidity rose to 24.8 billion euros from 18.7 billion at the end of the second quarter. Excluding one-time items, third-quarter operating profit was 3.2 billion euros ($3.8 billion), down from 4.8 billion euros a year earlier, but up from a second quarter loss of 1.7 billion. In a note to clients, Jefferies analyst Philippe Houchois described the results as a "solid performance with strong cash, but relatively muted in the context of the (auto) sector recovery." Last week, German rival Daimler reported a record 24% jump in Chinese demand for its Mercedes-Benz cars, boosting its margins in the third quarter. Italian-American Fiat Chrysler Automobiles and Peugeot manufacturer PSA Group both also posted solid results this week. Witter said Volkswagen could not say for sure whether it would meet EU CO2 emissions targets this year, adding "it will be a tough race." At 1030 GMT, Volkswagen shares were up 2.9% at 129.20 euros. Related Video: Earnings/Financials Audi Bentley Bugatti Lamborghini Porsche Volkswagen

Luc Donckerwolke named Director of Design for Bentley

Bentley has announced Luc Donckerwolke will take over as the automaker's Director of Design. Donckerwolke started with Volkswagen in 1992 as a designer for Audi. Since then, he's worked with Škoda, Lamborghini and Seat in various design roles. His resume includes helping sketch out both the Lamborghini Murciélago and Gallardo among other notable models.
The designer steps into the vacancy left by Dirk van Braeckel, who has moved on to work with Volkswagen Group design under Walter de Silva.
As you may recall, van Braeckel is responsible for a number of Bentley's most successful models, including both the Continental GT and the Mulsanne. He joined the ultra luxury automaker in 1999. You can take a look at the official announcement below for more information.