At the beginning of May 2024, the folks at Bentley confirmed that something called Ultra Performance Hybrid will replace the 4.0L twin-turbo V8 in the Continental GT, Continental GTC, and Flying Spur by the end of the year. Not long after, the British automaker announced that said models would be discontinued from the United Kingdom, European Union, and MEAI markets as part of the Beyond100 strategy.
Not exactly a coincidence, Bentley has just revealed the so-called Edition 8 for North America. The 8 in Edition 8 refers to the number of cylinders of the Porsche-Audi V8 in question, and this name further signals the end of the gas-only V8 in North America as well. The question is, how does Edition 8 differ from the regular Conti GT and Flying Spur?
The name of the game is Mulliner Personal Commissioning. Prospective customers are presented with a choice of 22-inch wheels in five- or ten-spoke designs, Blackline garnish for the exterior, Comfort Specification front seats, the rotating display we all know and love, as well as contrast stitching on the seats and the door cards.
Every car sports Edition 8 door sill plaques, and prospective customers are further offered more than 60 exterior paint colors from Mulliner's extended range. Another highlight is Mulliner's palm fluting pattern for the seats. Edition 8 badges are featured on the front fenders of the Continental GT and the Continental GTC, whereas the Flying Spur gets Edition 8 badges on the luxury sedan's D pillars.
This motif is also found on the headrests. Exclusive for North American markets, Edition 8 comes with self-leveling wheel center caps, a jewel-style fuel filler cap, and welcome lamps of the LED variety. The Volkswagen Group-controlled automaker did not mention how many examples of the breed will be made, but Crewe's favorite son did confirm that first deliveries are due imminently.
Photo: Bentley
The beating heart of the Edition 8 is a member of the KoVoMo engine family of sixes and eights, with KoVoMo standing for Konzern Vee Otto Motoren, which means group vee-style gasoline motors in German. The V6 mills come in 2,894- and 2,995-cube specs under the EA839 codename, while the 4.0-liter engine is known as the EA825.
Connected to a ZF 8HP eight-speed automatic, the V8 in the Continental GT, Continental GTC, and Flying Spur develops 542 horsepower and 568 pound-feet (770 Nm) for the 2024 model year. That's good enough for 3.9 seconds to 60 miles per hour (97 kilometers) in the Continental GT, whereas the GTC and Flying Spur are rated at 4.0 seconds.
The Audi-Porsche V8 was introduced to the Bentley marque in 2012 by the Continental GT. Back then, it produced a respectable 500 horsepower and 487 pound-feet (660 Nm) at full chatter. Although the gas-only V8 is going away, the Ultra Performance Hybrid leverages V8 oomph for a combined output that exceeds 740 hp and 738 lb-ft (1,000 Nm).
Bentley's new plug-in hybrid setup offers up to 80 kilometers (50 miles) of electric driving range in the WLTP. By comparison, the V6-powered Flying Spur Hybrid promises 41 kilometers (26 miles).
After a 1:43 scale model of a Ferrari 250 GTO sparked Mircea's interest for cars when he was a kid, an early internship at Top Gear sealed his career path. He's most interested in muscle cars and American trucks, but he takes a passing interest in quirky kei cars as well. Full profile
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