2012 Bentley Continental Gt on 2040-cars

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Xcar asks why the W in the Bentley Continental GT

There aren't a lot of automakers producing V12 engines these days: There's BMW and Mercedes, of course, and the Rolls-Royces and Paganis they power. There's Ferrari, Lamborghini and Aston Martin. But the largest producer of twelve-cylinder engines doesn't make them in a V. That'd be Bentley, and it produces more dozen-piston engines than anyone else, but arranges them in a W configuration. It's a compelling story of innovation, one as interesting as the history of the marque itself. And Xcar tells the tale in its latest video installment, tracing it back to the development of the compact VR6 engine and the autocratic mastermind at the helm of the Volkswagen Group who made the W12 a reality. By this point it would be all too easy to consign the W12 to the dustbin of history as the smaller, more efficient and nearly as powerful V8 has slotted in below to push the W12 to the margins of relevance. But it's still the more refined option, and the more innovative one. Little wonder it's the only type of twelve-cylinder engine (the Aventador's notwithstanding) that the Volkswagen Group still makes.

2022 Bentley Flying Spur Odyssean Edition launches the hybrid in style

The 2022 Bentley Flying Spur Hybrid will be the second plug-in hybrid in the company's lineup. And the brand is bestowing it with a special model called the Odyssean Edition to kick it off. It has some unique interior features that Bentley claims are more sustainable, but we would argue they don't do much to make the big sedan particularly green, at least not beyond its hybrid nature. Set that aside, though, and the Odyssean Edition is still a nice machine. The interior is the highlight of the Odyssean Edition, and in particular, the contrast stitching used on the seats. They've been dyed so that they start dark on the outer edges and fade to a lighter tone in the center. Bentley says this is the first time this stitching design has been used on a production car, with it originally appearing on the EXP 100 GT concept car. The rest of the interior is covered in natural leather (supposedly for its longevity), natural finish Koa wood (supposedly for less lacquer use) and some 100% wool spun into tweed panels on the backs of the front seats. You can get other Bentleys with leather and natural-finish wood, so they aren't really an extra step toward sustainability. On the outside, the Odyssean Edition is distinguished by champagne-colored accents on the 21-inch wheels, as well as the lower chrome and headlight and taillight surrounds. A badge also appears on the rear pillar. Bentley recommends six paint colors to match the accents, but if you really want to, you can pick from anything in the Bentley color range. Customers can also add options to the Odyssean Edition. We're a little surprised that some of those options include fairly common features such as ambient lighting, puddle lights, lane-keep assist, adaptive cruise control and a head-up display. But less common options include a leather headliner, light-up hideaway hood ornament, 3D diamond upholstery on door panels (shown in the gallery), revolving center display, wool carpeting and night vision. Availability and pricing were not announced. We would expect it to go on sale by the end of the year like regular Flying Spur Hybrids. And like those standard cars, the Odyssean Edition gets the same twin-turbo 2.9-liter V6 hybrid making 536 horsepower and 553 pound-feet of torque. Range from its 14.1-kWh battery is estimated at more than 25 miles. Related Video: Byron plays rich in the 2021 Bentley Flying Spur V8 | Autoblog

Bentley shows plug-in hybrid concept ahead of Beijing, will power SUV in 2017

From its more mainstream, popular origins in the original Honda Insight and Toyota Prius, the hybrid powertrain has worked its way up to the the corner office, the big chair, the top slot in the corporation. Bentley has announced that it will introduce a plug-in hybrid option on its SUV due in 2017. Before then, we'll see what an electrically assisted Bentley looks like at the Beijing Motor Show when the Crewe automaker shows off a copper-accented Mulsanne that's been reworked into its Hybrid Concept, pictured above.
We don't have any official specs just yet, the only major announcement being that any Bentley hybrid will be able to travel at least 50 kilometers (31 miles) on pure electric thrust and get a power boost of "up to" 25 percent from its electric side. We use the phrase "any Bentley hybrid" because the company's CEO says "we will gradually introduce this powertrain across our model range" to 90 percent of the brand's lineup.
We'll know more when the Beijing show commences. For now, there's the press release below and the high-res gallery above.