Car and Motorcycle: Bentley

Wednesday, September 16, 2015

Bentley

Assuming you have the money, you can write a check for a car that makes as much power as a Formula 1 car—700 or more hp—and legally drive it to the grocery store. In such a world, where does that leave production-based racing? Your typical entrant in the FIA’s GT3 class is producing somewhere between 500 hp and 600 hp. The latest iteration of the Bentley Continental GT Speed makes 616 hp. And that raises a few eyebrows because Bentley has just launched the Continental GT3 concept—the race car based on the GT Speed that the Crewe-based factory would like to enter in GT3 competition.
The Continental GT3 concept—the first Conti not to feature all-wheel drive—is being developed at Bentley HQ by a small, dedicated team led by Brian Gush. Gush was the man in charge when Bentley won the 24 Hours of Le Mans in 2003 with the Speed 8 in the prototype class. If the green light is given, this will be Bentley’s first foray into endurance racing since that victory.

According to Bentley, the concept is pretty close to what we’ll likely see if the Conti racer hits the track in late 2013. The design is 95 percent finalized and has been approved by the FIA. What’s not yet finalized is what will power the Conti GT3. Right now, the car is powered by the brand’s 6.0-liter W-12, but Bentley tells us that could change to a V-8 in the coming months.The decision to opt for the twelve at the moment has to do with its compact design and, Gush says, the fact that it suits the engine's current mounting location better than does the eight.
Bentley’s also tight-lipped about output numbers, but expect to see a figure somewhat less than the GT Speed’s 616 hp. What the GT3 also will have less of than the Speed is weight: The Speed tips the scales at what Bentley claims is a hefty 5115 pounds. Bentley's aim is to have the GT3 car weight less than the regulated 2866-pound minimum, and then to add ballast to get back up to spec. We can’t wait to find out how Bentley plans to cut a literal ton of mass, but stuff like the heated-and-cooled massaging seats, quilted leather headliner, and infotainment system obviously will be tossed. We hope Bentley keeps at least a sliver of the sumptuous wood trim, though; how cool would it be to race a GT3 car with rich mahogany on the dash?
The tentative plan is to enter a factory team (or a factory-backed team, as some series don't allow direct works involvement) in a few FIA-sanctioned GT3 races near the end of the 2013 season, with a full schedule being adopted the following year. Although there's some uncertainty about what the final regs will be for the newly merged Grand-Am and ALMS series, the team in Crewe is confident that the rules won't differ much from those around the globe. The Bentley boys will use the Conti GT3 concept’s launch in Paris to gauge the interest of private teams in purchasing the car for the 2014 season. There’s also a plan under consideration to produce a limited run of these track-only Continentals for public consumption.