“Speed… I, am speed…” – Lightning McQueen, 2006.
Since first watching the iconic Pixar film as a (very) young boy, those famous words from the opening scene would often play in my head at random times. Some 20 years later, they still have plenty of relevance.
Whether you’re about to start a race in a video game or settling in behind the wheel for a real-life race or track session, as a Cars fan and general driving enthusiast it’s hard not to pretend you’re Lightning McQueen psyching himself up for the next round of the Piston Cup.
And it was Lightning McQueen’s voice that was in my head when I slipped behind the wheel of the 2025 Bentley Continental GTC, er, Speed. But unlike the fun animated movie of my childhood, this big British bruiser is a serious ultra-luxury performance car for serious grown-ups.
The new-generation Bentley Continental coupe and its convertible GTC sibling may look almost the same as the models they replace, but there have been some substantial developments and revisions to make them the fastest and most focused Continentals ever.
Watch: Paul’s international first drive of the Bentley Continental GT Speed.
Specifically in flagship Speed trim, the iconic Bentley W12 engine has been retired and replaced by a thumping V8 twin-turbo plug-in hybrid (PHEV) setup borrowed from Porsche, making it the most powerful road-going Bentley ever.
Not only is there more performance, but the PHEV powertrain has also unlocked a new level of efficiency for the Bentley Continental. It can drive as a pure-electric vehicle for nearly 80km on a full charge, greatly reducing its CO2 emissions.
It’s likely the way of the future for exotic performance cars like this, as global emissions regulations continue to put pressure on luxury auto brands to reduce their carbon footprint, because it also allows customers to cling on to big-block internal combustion engines designed for maximum performance.
But does a plug-in hybrid system work in a $640,000 drop-top Bentley in the real world? We took one on an overnight trip into Victoria’s wine region to find out.
How much does the Bentley Continental GTC cost?
Base pricing for the Continental GTC Speed starts from $639,800 before on-road costs in Australia, nearly $40,000 more than the Continental GT hardtop.
| Model | Price before on-road costs |
|---|---|
| Bentley Continental GT Speed | $581,900 |
| Bentley Continental GT Speed Mulliner | $629,400 |
| Bentley Continental GTC Speed | $639,800 |
| Bentley Continental GTC Speed Mulliner | $692,200 |
Of course, the price of a Bentley is never really a finite number. There are a litany of personalisation and equipment options – not to mention the company’s bespoke Mulliner program – which could add tens, if not hundreds, of thousands of dollars to the final transaction price.
The example I drove, which wasn’t the blue example pictured here but finished in the Tourmaline Green hero paint you’ll have seen in the global press images, had around $200,000 of extras added to it. The paint alone was $22,000!
To see how the Bentley Continental lines up against the competition, check out our comparison tool
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What is the Bentley Continental GTC like on the inside?
Sublime.
Just about every surface is finished with soft, smooth leather or detailed with metal or wood accents. Then there’s the gorgeous top-stitching, all of which comes together to feel suitably sumptuous.
The driver is faced with a pair of 12.3-inch HD displays for the instrument cluster and central touchscreen, the latter attached to an (optional) revolving door that can hide the multimedia display away behind a trio of gauges – very clever and classy.
Unlike Bentleys of old, which often had quite conspicuous links to the Audi and Porsche models with which they shared their platforms, the Continental does a much better job at feeling bespoke – save for a couple of elements that only trained eyes will notice.
The new displays have a distinctly Bentley finish now, which is a great change from the first iteration of the marque’s digital bits. The craftsmanship is also a cut above that of its Volkswagen Group stablemates, with meticulous stitching and knurling details making every interaction with the buttons and switches feel a little bit special.
I also love the solidity of the touch points, like the gear selector and column stalks, as well as the clicky action of the physical buttons. Even the touchscreen has haptic feedback – again borrowed from Audi – maintaining a level of tactility and reinforcing the perceived quality for which the British marque is known.
That said, the steering wheel is still very clearly based on a previous-generation Audi design, and a nerd like me can see the family links in the software interface. But to be fair, I don’t think the typical Bentley buyer would care.
Our tester’s cabin was finished in a lovely ‘Beluga’ black hide, contrasted with ‘Linen’ accents and lovely details like diamond quilting and contrast top-stitching. The matching ‘Veneer’ was the optional Piano Linen over Grand Black, which according to the as-tested spec sheet adds a hefty $10,153. Ouch.
Pretty much anything else you can see or touch is lined with smooth leather or finished in metal, and there are some cool details like the ‘organ stops’ for the air vents.
Our test car was also fitted with the optional Bang & Olufsen 1500W sound system featuring 16 speakers and a 16-channel amplifier. It’s a $13,849 option (before stamp duty), and ups the ante over the standard 650W Bentley audio setup.
While it’s not the flagship 18-speaker, two-shaker Naim system (which costs about $5000 more), the B&O system is still excellent, and did a great job of pumping out crisp tunes with the roof down during our time with the Continental GTC.
Audio quality is deep and detailed, with solid thumpy bass. You can turn it up loud enough so you genuinely cannot hear anything else with the roof down, without distortion.
Our test car was also fitted with a pair of packages that add niceties like automatic seat climate control with heating and ventilation, full electric adjustment including the cushion extensions and bolsters, as well as extended heating for surfaces like the armrest on chilly days – which probably should all be standard at this price point.
Being a high-end two-door convertible sports car, you’d be right not to expect a great deal of practicality.
But you’d also expect any Bentley to be able to fit a decent amount of luggage or some golf clubs in its boot, and perhaps decent rear seats to accommodate the children of your second marriage. Sadly that’s not the case here.
The PHEV battery and space for the retracted roof means the GTC Speed only offers 134 litres of cargo space, which isn’t much at all. It barely swallowed my carry-on suitcase and backpack, with the rest (including my co-pilot’s suitcase) having to be buckled into the back seat.
You don’t get a whole lot of places to stow stuff in the front of the cabin either, with a shallow cubby under the centre armrest good for a phone (it includes a wireless charger) but not much else, as well as a couple of cupholders and a glovebox.
The leather-lined door bins add a bit more storage space, but they’re almost too nice to use in fear of damaging or marking the upholstery…
| Dimensions | Bentley Continental GTC Speed |
|---|---|
| Length | 4895mm |
| Width | 1966mm |
| Height | 1392mm |
| Wheelbase | 2848mm |
| Cargo capacity | 134 litres |
To see how the Bentley Continental lines up against the competition, check out our comparison tool
What’s under the bonnet?
You can no longer get the Bentley Continental with 12 cylinders, but the new twin-turbo V8 plug-in hybrid drivetrain is substantially more powerful than any GT or GTC before it.
| Specifications | Bentley Continental GTC Speed |
|---|---|
| Engine | 4.0L twin-turbo V8 PHEV |
| Engine outputs | 441kW + 800Nm |
| Electric motor outputs | 140kW + 450Nm |
| System outputs | 575kW + 1000Nm |
| Battery | 25.9kWh li-ion |
| Transmission | 8-speed dual-clutch automatic |
| Driven wheels | AWD |
| 0-100km/h (claimed) | 3.4 seconds |
| Top speed | 285km/h |
| Weight | 2636kg kerb |
| Fuel economy (claimed) | 10.6L/100km |
| Fuel tank capacity | 80 litres |
| Electric driving range | 78km – WLTP |
| CO2 emissions | 31g/km |
The 4.0-litre V8 features a flat-plane crank and twin single-scroll turbochargers. Combined with the plug-in hybrid system, the GTC Speed’s drivetrain makes this the most powerful production vehicle that Bentley has ever built.
When in EV mode, you can drive at speeds of up to 140km/h. The 400V electrical system also allows the Continental GTC Speed to be recharged at a rate of up to 11kW using AC power, which should replenish the battery in 2.5 hours.
While not mentioned by Bentley, the Speed’s PHEV drivetrain is very similar to the one used by the latest Porsche Panamera Turbo S E-Hybrid, which quotes identical outputs. The Bentley Continental two-door and Flying Spur four-door have historically shared their underpinnings with Porsche’s flagship limousine.
To see how the Bentley Continental lines up against the competition, check out our comparison tool
How does the Bentley Continental GTC drive?
On the surface, this 4.9-metre long and nearly 2.0m-wide drop-top should be a bit scary to drive with outputs of 575kW and 1000Nm – but really, it’s not.
We drove the Speed from Bentley Melbourne in Collingwood out to Balgownie Estate in Yarra Glen, via the winding roads of the Yarra Valley.
It was a stunning drive for myself and my co-driver, offering all of the open-top thrills the Continental delivers on a mild, overcast Melbourne day.
My rule is ‘no rain, no roof’, so we spent the entirety of the day with the roof down – otherwise, what’s the point?
Leaving Melbourne’s inner north, the Continental GTC Speed defaults to electric mode, quietly rolling along in city traffic with only the rushing of the wind and surrounding cars to be heard with the roof down.
The electric motor’s 140kW/450Nm outputs don’t seem like all that much on paper, especially given the Continental GTC’s 2636kg heft, but that torque peak is available from the moment you hit the ‘loud’ pedal – and it’s more than enough for wafting around the city and the ‘burbs while saving fuel.
In terms of drive modes, there are a few ways you can go about it. There’s the drive mode select which allows you to cycle through Bentley, Comfort, Sport and Custom profiles, and you can also toggle ‘E Mode’ if you want to rely solely on electric power.
The car will default to ‘Bentley’ mode on start-up, which like a lot of VW Group cars with ‘Auto’ settings will optimise the drivetrain for efficiency in normal driving but can open up the floodgates if you demand some more shove. If you want the full gamut of what the twin-turbo V8 PHEV drivetrain has to offer – including the loudest exhaust setting – it’s best to twist the selector dial over to ‘Sport’.
Whether you’re bellowing down a freeway on-ramp or tearing through a winding B-road approaching Yarra Glen, the GTC’s ‘Sport’ mode is definitely most in line with this particular model’s ‘Speed’ badging. It’s ferociously quick in the most elegant and sophisticated kind of way, insulating you from riff-raff like road noise and unwanted mechanical sounds, and instead focusing on the deep and brassy V8 engine note, plus some exhaust pops and crackles when the eight-speed DCT auto flicks through its ratios.
Speaking of, if you’re worried the dual-clutch transmission will reduce refinement compared to the conventional torque converter autos of old Bentleys, don’t be. It’s smooth off the line thanks to the electric assistance, and its shift speeds are almost imperceptible when you’re going hard, with almost no interruption to power delivery under rapid acceleration.
I mentioned earlier that the Continental should be intimidating to drive on paper, but it really shrinks around you like a big Porsche does. After all, the Continental GTC shares its DNA, including its MSB evo underpinnings, with the excellent Porsche Panamera.
While the steering rack isn’t quite as feelsome as its Stuttgart-born cousin’s, it’s quick and direct enough to give you confidence when pushing this big British brute through a tight set of bends.
The grip from the AWD system, which includes an electronic limited-slip diff, adds to that reassurance, and you never feel like the GTC Speed’s mammoth outputs are going to send you sideways off a mountain hairpin.
Bentley’s 0-100km/h acceleration claim of just 3.4 seconds seems entirely believable by the seat of the pants, but testing the 285km/h top speed rating will have to wait until I can get one onto a German autobahn. Regardless, this is quicker than anyone needs to go on an Australian public road, and you’ll hit the national highway limit way before you even touch the Bentley’s performance ceiling.
It’s just as enjoyable when you slow things down, too. The adaptive air suspension is comfortable in every setting, though there’s noticeable differences between modes and in Sport there’s almost no body roll. But while cruising in B (for Bentley) mode, it’s so beautifully refined that you could genuinely drive for hours without getting bored or tired.
The GTC Speed motors along effortlessly, with the drivetrain shuffling between power sources at its leisure. And when the V8 turns over, its muted growl only adds to the serene atmosphere. If I had a complaint, it’s that it could be louder in all of its settings, because when the roof is down it’s often drowned out by the wind rushing over your ears.
My other gripe is that the Continental is just so physically large that it made some of the twisty country roads we drove on feel too narrow. Then again, this is a Bentley. It’s a blisteringly fast grand tourer that it gobbles up straights and sweeping bends with ease – if you want a British corner-carver, get an Aston Martin or a McLaren.
I didn’t spend much time using the driver assistance features, though the adaptive cruise control and lane-keep assist work much like they do in any Audi or Porsche – they’re intuitively calibrated and never over-zealous or intrusive, as we’ve found with an increasing amount of new models of late.
To see how the Bentley Continental lines up against the competition, check out our comparison tool
What do you get?
As is the case with most of ’boutique’ brands, the made-to-order nature of vehicles like the Continental GTC means you more or less build your car from the ground up, rather than just browsing a spec list and choosing a colour.
As such, our test vehicle was fitted with a number of extra-cost options above the baseline specification, totalling over $130,000(!). That’s not to say there’s not a decent amount of kit included as standard, however.
2026 Bentley Continental GTC Speed equipment highlights:
- 420mm front, 380mm rear ventilated brake discs
- Red brake calipers
- 22-inch Speed alloy wheels – silver painted
- 22-inch summer tyres incl. Pirelli noise cancellation
- Tyre pressure monitoring
- Tyre inflation kit
- Bentley Performance Active Chassis – sports steering, active dampers
- Air suspension – two-chamber, two-valve, with Continuous Damping Control
- Torque vectoring by eLSD
- Bentley Dynamic Ride
- All-wheel steering
- Launch Control
- Auto-folding, four-layer insulated fabric roof
- Dark tint matrix front grille
- Dark tint lower bumper grille
- Electrically adjustable door mirrors – heated, power folding, auto dimming, memory, dip on reverse
- Matrix LED headlights incl. welcome and coming home animation
- LED tail-lights incl. smoked lenses, welcome and coming home animation
- Acoustic, heat-insulating windscreen
- Acoustic side glass
- Sports exhaust
- Rain-sensing wipers
- Hands-free boot
- Keyless entry and start
- Nappa leather and Dinamica suede combination upholstery
- Diamond knurling to rotary switches, column stalks
- 12-way electric front seats incl. 2-position memory
- Single-tone, 3-spoke leather/Dinamica heated steering wheel
- Bentley analogue clock with smooth bezel
- Auto-dimming rear-view mirror
- Multi-zone automatic climate control
- 12.3-inch HD touchscreen navigation system
- DAB+ digital radio
- Wireless Apple CarPlay
- Wireless Android Auto
- 60GB SSD – 10GB available user space
- Bentley Signature Audio
To see how the Bentley Continental lines up against the competition, check out our comparison tool
Options
As noted earlier, our test car was fitted with a litany of options.
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Option packages as-tested include (prices excl. stamp duty):
Touring Specification: $13,368.07
- Adaptive cruise control with Lane Guidance
- Night Vision
- Head-up display
Front Seat Comfort Specification: $8587.15
- Adjustable front seat bolsters
- Adjustable seat cushion length
- Front seat neck warmer
- Power-adjustable head restraints
- Front seat ventilation and massage
- Heated front armrest
- Leather-trimmed seatbelt buckles
Continental Blackline Specification: $8866.00
- Black door handles
- Black gloss front grille, black surround
- Black lower side blades
- Black rear bumper strike
- Black rear number plate embellishers
- Black headlight and tail-light embellishers
- Black side window surrounds
- Black tailpipes
Front Wellness Seating: $4368.65
- Postural Adjust
- Seat Auto Climate
Single-item options as-tested include:
- Animated welcome lamps – By Mulliner: $2545.40
- Deep pile overmats front, rear: $1229.80
- First aid kit and warning triangle: $293.15
- Bang & Olufsen for Bentley: $13,849.55
- Bentley Rotating Display: $13.020.15
- Contrast stitching: $7357.35
- 22-inch ’10 Swept Spoke’ wheel – black painted: $7493.20
- Dual finish veneers – Piano Linen over Grand Black: $10,153.00
- Mulliner Range Paint – Tourmaline Green: $22,679.80
- Bright Chrome diamond knurling: $4997.85
- Leather Specification: $5484.04
- Mood Lighting Specification: $4125.55
- Standard Brakes with Black painted calipers: $3417.70
To see how the Bentley Continental lines up against the competition, check out our comparison tool
Is the Bentley Continental GTC safe?
Like most high-end vehicles, particularly sports cars, the Continental range hasn’t been tested by ANCAP or Euro NCAP.
Standard safety features include:
- Adaptive Cruise Assist
- Lane Assist
- Blind-spot monitoring
- Emergency Assist
- Reversing camera incl. 3D Surround View
- Parking sensors – front, rear
- Intelligent Park Assist
- City Assist – AEB
- Manoeuvre Assist
- Pedestrian warning
- Rear cross-traffic alert
To see how the Bentley Continental lines up against the competition, check out our comparison tool
How much does the Bentley Continental GTC cost to run?
Bentley covers its range with a three-year, unlimited-kilometre warranty. You also get five years of free servicing.
| Servicing and Warranty | Bentley Continental GTC Speed |
|---|---|
| Warranty | 3 years, unlimited kilometres |
| Roadside assistance | 3 years |
| Service intervals | 12 months or 16,000 kilometres |
|
Capped-price servicing |
5 years complemintary |
To see how the Bentley Continental lines up against the competition, check out our comparison tool
Daily Sparkz’s Take on the Bentley Continental GTC
I feel like I’ve said this once or twice before, but these kinds of cars are the ones that are purchased with one’s heart, not one’s head.
Compared to a lot of the mainstream models we test at Daily Sparkz, there’s no financial or practical sense in buying a vehicle like this for most people.
So what makes someone want a $600,000 Bentley over a $600,000 Ferrari or Aston Martin? As the crew from Crewe will like to tell you, it’s about status, opulence and comfort, backed by blistering performance.
The GTC Speed provides just that, while also cutting a sexy silhouette that’s instantly recognisable and desirable – the eye-popping colour doesn’t hurt, either.
Bentley has done well to preserve the Continental Speed’s character with its new plug-in V8 hybrid drivetrain and, if anything, the quietness and refinement of electrification suits this car and the Bentley brand more so than most boutique manufacturers.
Anyway, if you’re lucky enough to be in the market for one of these and you’ve read this far, I know you’re not hinging your decision on my opinion – but just know I like it very much and am very jealous.
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MORE: Explore the Bentley Continental showroom
