2025 Bentley Flying Spur Revealed with 771-HP Hybrid V-8, Refined Bumper

The luxury sedan adds Bentley’s Ultra Performance Hybrid powertrain and revises the wheels, front bumper, and grille styling.By Jack FitzgeraldPublished: Sep 10, 2024Save Article

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• The 2025 Bentley Flying Spur replaces the car’s W-12 engine with the same plug-in-hybrid V-8 as the Continental GT.
• Bentley calls it the “Ultra Performance Hybrid powertrain,” and it makes 771 horsepower and 738 pound-feet of torque.
• Along with the new engine, Bentley added new wheel options and updated styling for the front bumper and grille.

Sure, half of the clientele for the Flying Spur won’t ever drive this ultimate luxury vehicle themselves, but that’s not important. What is important (to them, at least): bragging rights. How does 771 horsepower sound? How about 738 pound-feet of torque? What about 47 miles of EV range? Those figures are all attached to the 2025 Bentley Flying Spur, which ditches the old W-12 powertrain in favor of the newer plug-in hybrid found in the Continental GT.

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Bentley calls the new unit the “Ultra Performance Hybrid,” and it combines a twin-turbo 4.0-liter V-8 that peaks at 584 horsepower with a 187-hp electric motor, which is sandwiched between the engine and the eight-speed dual-clutch automatic transmission. According to the automaker, the refreshed Spur can spring from zero to 60 mph in 3.3 seconds. Assuming that number is accurate, the new version is even quicker than the last, which we managed to launch to 60 mph in 3.5 seconds with both the eight- and 12-cylinder models.

The other changes for the 2025 Flying Spur are focused on the visuals. Bentley thrives on giving its customers the option to customize, and that’s on full display here. The interior adds a new diamond quilt pattern for the seats, while the 3D diamond hide now stretches to the doors and pillars. In a first for the model, Bentley’s optional Wellness Seating Specification can now be ordered for all four seats—enabling automated climate and posture settings for each seat.

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Changes to the exterior are focused on the front end of the car, which retains most of the previous car’s design language but adds a new bumper and a new grille. The bumper now takes on a slightly more aggressive look that extends the body panel into the lower fascia. Three new 22-inch wheel designs round out changes to the styling.

First to launch will be the “performance-focused” Speed model, and it will be available in more than 100 exterior colors or just about any custom color scheme desired. Pricing has not been announced, but the outgoing model started just under $220,000 and went up (way up) from there.

More on Bentley

• 771-HP Bentley Flying Spur Hybrid Debuts Sept. 10
• New Bentley Continental GT PHEV Adds Pounds, Power
• Tested: 2022 Bentley Flying Spur Hybrid

Jack Fitzgerald

Associate News Editor

Jack Fitzgerald’s love for cars stems from his as yet unshakable addiction to Formula 1.
After a brief stint as a detailer for a local dealership group in college, he knew he needed a more permanent way to drive all the new cars he couldn’t afford and decided to pursue a career in auto writing. By hounding his college professors at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, he was able to travel Wisconsin seeking out stories in the auto world before landing his dream job at Car and Driver. His new goal is to delay the inevitable demise of his 2010 Volkswagen Golf.

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2025 Bentley Continental GT Plug-In Hybrid Is Heavier but Mightier

With a 771-hp V-8 PHEV powertrain, the new Conti GT Speed is the most powerful road car Bentley has ever built, but it packs on some pounds too.By Mike DuffPublished: Jun 25, 2024Save Article

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• The 2025 Bentley Continental GT has been fully revealed, with the Speed model’s plug-in-hybrid V-8 powertrain producing 771 horsepower.
• The PHEV’s 25.9-kWh battery is estimated to provide more than 30 miles of electric-only range
• Both the coupe (GT) and convertible (GTC) body styles will be launched at the same time.

The Bentley Continental GT has evolved at a gentle pace that matches its supremely relaxed driving experience. It is now 21 years since the first Volkswagen-era Continental GT was launched, a car that used a turbocharged 6.0-liter W-12 making 552 horsepower to motivate its 5250 pounds of mass. The revised 2012 version saw those numbers rise to 567 horses and 5264 pounds. Then the substantially new third generation that launched in 2019 added power and subtracted weight, with the 626-hp W-12 working against just 5056 pounds.

Now, more radical change arrives with the 2025 Continental GT, which Bentley describes as the fourth generation, despite continuing to share much of its core structure with its predecessor. The W-12 engine is now dead, as is the less powerful, albeit more charismatic, V-8 that previously understudied it. The new Conti GT Speed launches with a plug-in-hybrid V-8 powertrain that produces 771 horsepower. That figure makes it the most powerful road car that Bentley has ever produced, although it’s also considerably heavier than its predecessor thanks to the additional mass of its sizable 25.9-kWh battery. Bentley claims the new Continental GT coupe weighs 5421 pounds, with the GTC convertible being 390 pounds heavier.

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Despite the mechanical transformation, the new Continental GT is a heavy facelift of the outgoing version rather than an entirely new model. The official line is that 68 percent of components are new, but the official pictures show that the glazing is carried over, as are the fundamental proportions. Length has increased by 1.8 inches to 192.7 inches, but the 112.2-inch wheelbase is unchanged. The most distinctive new exterior design detail are headlights that now incorporate a linear running light element that passes beyond the oval lenses, which Bentley’s official release describes as eyebrows. Doing this means the new Conti is the first road-going Bentley to have single headlamps since the 1950s. At the back the taillights are larger than before and now feature what is described as a “three-dimensional diamond pattern.”Bentley

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The outgoing Continental’s interior always felt plenty special, and the fundamentals have not been radically altered with the generational shift. The digital instrumentation has been redesigned, but the center console seems to be unchanged—meaning physical switchgear for various dynamic functions as well as HVAC controls remain. As before there will be the option of a rotating center display, one that moves between a 12.3-inch touchscreen, a trio of analogue gauges, and a blank but beautiful piece of handcrafted veneer.

New color and trim options include what is described as a “Dark Chrome” pack that will bring a more somber tone to the cabin. Three different audio systems will be offered, with even the base setup boasting 10 speakers and 650 watts. Above this are two upgrade options: a 16-speaker, 1500-watt Bang & Olufsen system with illuminated speaker grilles and an 18-speaker, 2200-watt Naim setup.

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The Conti’s most significant upgrade is definitely the one made to the powertrain. The new GT Speed combines the efforts of a twin-turbo 4.0-liter V-8 that peaks at 584 hp (42 horses more than the GT’s outgoing V-8) and is assisted by a 187-hp electric motor that sits between the gas engine and the eight-speed dual-clutch automatic transmission, giving the system a combined 771 horsepower and 738 pound-feet of torque. By itself, the electric motor can deliver up to 332 pound-feet. As before, all-wheel drive is standard, with an electronically controlled center differential to move effort between the axles.

The substantial capacity of the onboard battery gives the new Continental serious electric-only range, although probably not quite as impressive as the 51 miles Bentley says it is targeting under the generally optimistic European WLTP test cycle. But even 50 percent of that figure would represent an improvement on Bentley’s first plug-in-hybrid powertrain, which debuted on the Bentayga but only provides 23 miles of range in EV mode.

The new Continental is able to drive at speeds of up to 87 mph using electricity alone. It can also recharge the battery while on the move, something the Bentayga PHEV cannot. However, it will still take nearly three hours to replenish the pack through the maximum charging rate of 11 kW. Another advantage brought by the battery’s rear-mounted location is improving the GT’s static weight distribution. It’s now 48:52 front to rear versus 55:45 on the old car.

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Other dynamic hardware seems to be mostly carried over. The Continental GT Speed will get air springs, dual-valve adaptive dampers, rear-axle steering, and 48-volt anti-roll bars. Cast-iron brakes are standard, with carbon ceramics available as an option.

Beyond the additional weight (and doubtless added cost) of its folding roof, the Continental GTC has a slightly lower top speed than the coupe, being limited to 177 mph. The hardtop has a claimed top speed of 208 mph. Despite the difference in mass, Bentley claims it only takes the GTC one-tenth of a second longer to blast from zero to 60 mph (3.2 seconds versus the coupe’s 3.1 seconds).

While the 2025 Bentley Continental GT is being launched with one powertrain, Bentley’s use of “Speed” branding, previously reserved for the W-12-powered version, suggests that a slightly less powerful model may be launched beneath it. But based on the company’s prior commitment to hybridize its entire range, we already know that any other Continental GT variant will also be a PHEV.

The 2025 Bentley Continental GT Will Have 771 Horsepower

The more powerful new GT will come with a plug-in-hybrid powertrain, plus four-wheel steering, all-wheel drive, and torque vectoring.By Mike DuffPublished: May 16, 2024Save Article

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• The upcoming 2025 model will be the most powerful roadgoing Bentley Continental GT yet, thanks to a plug-in-hybrid powertrain.
• The new GT will offer up to 50 miles of EV-only range based on the European WLTP protocol.
• Bentley will have hybridized its entire model range by 2026.

It is only a week since Bentley confirmed it would be replacing its recently retired 6-liter W-12 engine with a plug-in hybridized twin-turbo V-8 which, the company told us, would make “more than 740 horsepower.” That, it turns out, was a deliberate understatement, because these first teaser images of the revised Continental GT were accompanied by confirmation it will be making peaks of 771 horsepower and 737 pound-feet of torque.Bentley

Those figures will make the new car the most powerful roadgoing Continental yet, by a considerable margin; the last-generation Conti GT Speed made 650 horsepower and 665 pound-feet of torque. This is the sort of inflation we should be actively encouraging.

There are still plenty of unknowns. Bentley hasn’t released any performance claims for the new powerplant, nor, crucially, a weight figure. This seems certain to have risen given the extra mass added by the plug-in-hybrid powertrain which includes a battery of unstated size, but yet capable of providing a claimed 50 miles of EV range (doubtless under Europe’s optimistic WLTP testing protocol). We will also need to wait to learn peak charging speeds.Bentley

But we can extrapolate some more details from the other closely related Volkswagen Group products that are already announced, including the forthcoming Lamborghini Urus SE and the Porsche Panamera Turbo E-Hybrid. Like them, the Bentley will almost certainly have an electric motor between its combustion engine and gearbox—probably the same twin-clutch transmission as the outgoing Conti GT—with drive then delivered to all four wheels. Bentley has also confirmed the new Continental will have four-wheel steering, a 48-volt electromechanical anti-roll system, and all-wheel drive including torque vectoring.

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Although wearing a disguise in the accompanying pictures, it looks as if what Bentley describes as being the fourth-generation Continental is a facelift of the retiring third-gen model. Given Bentley’s previous commitment to make the entire range hybrid by 2026, we can safely anticipate that the PHEV powertrain will spread rapidly through the rest of the range.

We look forward to being able to tell you more when full details land soon.

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