SPYSHOTS: 2018 Bentley Continental GTC uncovered

SPYSHOTS: 2018 Bentley Continental GTC uncovered

The Bentley Continental GTC – soft-top sister to the coupe Continental GT – appears to be nearing its official debut, following the all-new GT’s debut at the 2017 Frankfurt Motor Show. It appears to be just about ready for its debut, save for the camouflage exterior finish and the absent badges.

The GTC’s frontal aesthetic treatment is all but identical to the GT’s, where wire-mesh is applied for the grille and bumper intakes. Lamp assemblies and character lines on the bonnet appear to be copied over from the GT, however that is to be expected; these are essentially twins, after all, therefore similarly drawing from the EXP 10 Speed 6 concept.

Roofline on the GTC will naturally be the most apparent visual differentiator from the GT, where the fastback rear treatment gives way to a flatter deck atop the rear of the GTC, which also gets chrome trim starting from the trailing edges of the top of the windscreen and A-pillars, joining the upper edges of the doors towards the rear where the fabric roof meets the bodywork.

Powertrain specifications for the Continental GTC are expected to be the same as its coupe sibling, most likely heading into launch with the same 6.0 litre W12 twin-turbo engine which produces 626 hp and 900 Nm of torque in the GT. The GTC’s performance statistics can be expected to be marginally behind the GT’s 333 km/h top speed and 3.7-second 0-100 km/h time.

SPYSHOTS: 2018 Bentley Continental GTC uncovered

Its driveline is likely to mimic the new Continental GT’s, and will almost certainly use that car’s eight-speed dual-clutch automatic gearbox. Previously, a torque converter unit was employed. The rest of the driveline should follow the GT brief with rear-biased all-wheel drive, being predominantly RWD for better efficiency, understeer resistance and driver engagement.

Versions of the GTC powered by the VW Group’s V8 bi-turbo petrol engine are also expected to feature further along its lifecycle, as has been the case with the previous-generation car. These, too, should also be mated with a rear-biased all-wheel drive setup.

The move to the VW Group’s MSB platform aims to help the car shed weight, and given the similarities to its fixed-roof twin the GTC should also see a weight saving of around 80 kg. New tech afforded by the MSB platform, as on the Audi A8, includes the 48V electrical architecture which enables fully adaptive roll control, called Dynamic Ride on the Continental GT, for improving both ride comfort and handling.

GALLERY: Third-generation Bentley Continental GT in Malaysia

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Mick Chan

Open roads and closed circuits hold great allure for Mick Chan. Driving heaven to him is exercising a playful chassis on twisty paths; prizes ergonomics and involvement over gadgetry. Spent three years at a motoring newspaper and short stint with a magazine prior to joining this website.

 
 

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