10 years after its last victory at Le Mans, Bentley's latest motorsport project continues to progress. Set to rival Ferrari, Mercedes AMG and Aston Martin across
international GT racing
Continental GT3
is being developed with Malcolm Wilson's M-Sport.
Bentley has confirmed V8 power for GT3
The most significant recent development is the confirmation that the Continental GT3 will use the road car's
4.0-litre twin-turbocharged V8
6.0-litre W12
initially mooted. It probably won't make a great deal more power than the 500hp that is found in the roadgoing V8. The gearbox is a six-speed sequential item and race-spec brakes, springs and dampers have been installed.
But Bentley's biggest challenge must have been stripping weight from the Continental. Getting a 1,500kg Ferrari 458 or 1,700kg Audi R8 race-ready appears an easier task than with a 2,300kg Bentley. Still, it's been achieved, with more than 1,000kg being removed in the transition from GT to GT3. There are predictably some simple ways to shed kilos from a luxury coupe (the racer doesn't need double glazing or more than 50 ECUs, for example) but the results remain impressive given the standard silhouette remains. Carbonfibre has been used for the bonnet, bootlid and doors, with the latter weighing 12 per cent of the road car's doors.
Diet has stripped, literally, a tonne of weight
But this remains a Bentley. So the wonderful craftsmen and women of Crewe have trimmed the carbon seat (presumably whilst weeping at the sight of a Bentley with a roll cage) and also stitched the steering wheel and door pulls. Which is a nice touch.
The GT3 project is under the tutelage of Bentley's Director of Motorsport, Brian Gush. He was also involved in the 2003 Le Mans campaign and said of the Continental racer: "Not one single part of the GT3 has escaped our attention, and the result is a car that can compete with the field in terms of factors such as power, weight and aerodynamics."
Testing and development of the Continental GT3 continues ahead of its race debut expected later this year. The prospect of Bentley returning to motorsport, racing against the Ford GT, McLaren MP4-12C, Lamborghini Gallardo and Nissan GT-R with a Continental is a tantalising prospect, and we can't wait to see the reality.