The S designation in Bentley’s model range has always earmarked some of its sportiest models. But with the latest Continental GT S and GTC S, the iconic British marque has shown that S also stands for serious style and speed. The new S variants of the famed Continental combine Bentley’s 670-horsepower High Performance Hybrid V8 powertrain with the sophisticated active chassis from the Continental GT Speed, making this the most powerful Continental GT S yet. Of course, this being Bentley, they are also the most beautiful super-luxury sports cars on the road.
We drove both the coupe and convertible at The Ranch Hudson Valley in Sloatsburg, New York, where a distinctly English-looking country estate provided the backdrop for Bentley’s latest grand tourers. The Ranch occupies the former Table Rock Estate, a sprawling stone manor house set on 200 forested acres surrounding a private lake. Built in the early 1900s by J.P. Morgan, the house has the atmosphere of an English gentleman’s country retreat, complete with wood-paneled rooms, fireplaces, a library and former gun room.
Today, the estate is the East Coast location of The Ranch, the luxury wellness retreat founded in Malibu. The former ballroom with an enormous stone fireplace and detailed molding is now a 2,000-square-foot gym, while a 5,000-square-foot glass solarium houses a heated indoor pool, infrared sauna and hot and cold plunges. Outside on the graveled forecourt, the new GT S and GTC S models awaiting their chance to open up added some modern horsepower to the estate’s century-old grandeur.
The S has considerably more muscle than the stately scenery might suggest. Bentley says the latest S has nearly 20 percent more power and torque than previous generations. Its High Performance Hybrid powertrain combines a 4.0-liter twin-turbocharged V8 producing 511 hp with a 187-hp electric motor. Combined output is 670 hp and 686 lb-ft of torque, with a 25.9-kWh battery and eight-speed dual-clutch transmission. All of which means the Continental GT S can hit 60 mph in 3.3 seconds and has a top speed of 191 mph.
“What this car basically does is combine the powertrain of the core car with the chassis of the GT Speed,” Bentley Head of Product Communications Mike Sayer said during the Hudson Valley event. “So we’re leaning into the car’s natural dynamic ability. We’re enhancing it.” That means the S gets Bentley’s Performance Active Chassis, including all-wheel steering, an electronic limited-slip differential and torque vectoring, twin-valve dampers, Bentley Dynamic Ride 48-volt active anti-roll control and a new electronic stability-control system.
Twin-valve dampers can adjust bump and rebound independently, allowing Bentley to widen the difference between the car’s driving modes without sacrificing its traditional grand-touring ride. “If you put the car into Comfort mode, you will find a very, very soft and comfortable GT car,” Sayer notes. “If you put it into Sport, the entire character of the car will change and you’ll feel the car tense.”
Style is the other half of the S formula. Blackline specification replaces much of the exterior brightwork with black trim, including the Bentley wings and lettering, mirror caps and matrix grille. There is a Beluga black front splitter, S-specific sill extensions, dark-tinted rear lamps and a Beluga rear diffuser. A stainless-steel sports exhaust ends in dark, slashed-oval outlets, while a new 22-inch ten-swept-spoke S wheel is available. The exhaust supplies its own soundtrack. Sayer calls it “proper cross-plane V8 sound,” adding, “It’s quite addictive.”
Even at full throttle, a Bentley is never brutish or brash. Even when blowing by other cars in the passing lane, behind the wheel of the new S Continentals even blowing by other cars in the passing lane somehow feels like a move executed with more panache. This is a car that roars when you want it to but never loses its elevated accent. Ensconced in so much leather, wood and hand-finished detail, even considerable speed feels more civilized. The S may have borrowed the serious hardware from the GT Speed, but it remains a Bentley first—a reminder that a gentleman can go as fast as he wants but he should never be in a hurry.
Inside, S models have their own color split and fluted seat design, with Dinamica, Bentley’s alternative to Alcantara, on the seat and door inserts, steering wheel and gear lever. Piano black is standard, while Dark Tint Chrome, carbon fiber, aluminum and Bentley’s traditional veneers provide plenty of scope for customization. The cabin also retains the hand craftsmanship that distinguishes Bentleys built at Crewe. A Continental GT uses at least 10 carefully inspected leather hides, depending on body style, sourced from Northern European cattle raised at higher altitudes where insect damage is less common.
Bentley’s craftspeople select the most pliable portions of each hide for curved surfaces such as the seats, while much of the stitching and finishing is still completed by hand. The wood receives similar attention: matching sheets cut from the same tree are mirror-matched to create a continuous grain around the cabin, then cured, sanded and lacquered five times. While other manufacturers strive to create ever more outlandish color combinations, Bentley’s understated elegance continues to define the pinnacle of bespoke British style that is more Savile Row than Sunset Strip.
Bentley Motors, Inc. President and CEO Michael Rocco rightly expects the S to play a substantial role in the marque’s Continental business. When the full model range is available, S versions will account for about 35 percent of Continental sales, he says. “We think the car is a home run and will do very well,” Rocco said at the Hudson Valley launch. The new model arrives at a fortuitous to help Bentley navigate a tougher luxury-car market; Rocco notes the company has remained profitable for seven consecutive years, and is on track to continue the trend.
“Though the business has gotten a little bit more difficult within the whole automotive industry, we’re still on a very, very positive trend,” Rocco says. Bentley has continued expanding its North American retail network, recently adding dealerships in Santa Barbara, Sarasota, San Antonio and Oakville, Ontario, with more on the way. Bentley has also been expanding Mulliner, its bespoke coachbuilding and customization division, which takes that emphasis on craftsmanship considerably further, from individually specified colors and materials to limited-production and one-off cars.
It was hard to pick a favorite on the drive, with both the coupe and convertible proving entertaining companions on the winding country roads. But we felt the dark green Barnato GTC S with its full saddle-brown leather interior best evoked the spirit of Bentley and the gentlemanly surroundings. Technology may enhance the driving experience, but heritage remains equally important. Bentley is at its best when speed and sophistication come in equal measure, and with the new S models it proves once again that it can deliver both better than anyone.