2018 Bentley Continental GT and GTC – latest spy pics

New, lighter, luxury coupé and convertible will switch to a platform shared with the next-generation Porsche Panamera; hybrid powertrain will be available

The next-generation Bentley Continental GT has been spotted testing in convertible GTC form ahead of the new model's expected launch in 2018. 

Both the 2018 GT coupé and GTC convertible feature new front-end styling that appears to draw from the EXP 10 Speed 6 concept first seen at last year's Geneva motor show - including a lower front and rear than the current car, as well as shorter overhangs and a shorter wheelbase.

Despite receiving new styling features, the Continental still carries Bentley's hallmark design, including plenty of cues from the current model.

The next Continental will be based on a new platform called MSB, which has been co-developed by Bentley and Porsche. It will also be used in lengthened form for the next-generation Panamera, which explains why the test mule in earlier spy pictures used a shortened current Panamera bodyshell with an altered ride height and cooling to meet Bentley’s specifications.

The Continental range will be significantly lighter than the outgoing model, Bentley boss Wolfgang Dürheimer has said.

Like the firm’s Bentayga SUV, the Continental’s bodyshell will be a hybrid-materials structure, with assorted high-strength steels reinforcing a body made mainly from aluminium. The current car is steel-bodied.

This change is part of a mass-reduction effort that should drop the car’s weight substantially below the 2375kg of today’s GT. However, it will not fall below two tonnes, Dürheimer said.

Powertrains will include the all-new 600bhp W12 that’s making its debut in the Bentayga and an updated 4.0-litre petrol V8. There will also be a petrol V6 plug-in hybrid, which will use a set-up that develops 410bhp in today’s Porsche Cayenne plug-in hybrid.

It’s unlikely that Bentley will offer a diesel V8 option in the Continental. This engine is soon to appear in the Bentayga with around 400bhp, rather than the 380bhp that it develops in the Cayenne.

Speaking at the Bentayga's launch earlier this year, Dürheimer said his “personal goal is a sustainable, stand-alone business with an annual production volume of 20,000 units”. He envisages seven model lines, although the Bentayga-derived sports SUV and the production version of the EXP 10 Speed 6 coupé that would be the sixth and seventh ranges have yet to be signed off.

Talking about the advantages of Bentley being part of the new Sports and Luxury Group at Volkswagen, Dürheimer said the VW Group test drives that take place in Namibia will now be split among the new groups and involve fewer cars. More can be achieved this way, he said.

Another gain will be sharing research and development skills, as well as a supplier base suitable for high-performance and luxury models from Porsche, Bentley and Bugatti. Dürheimer added that Lamborghini’s absence from this group “makes no sense”.