2026 Bentley Continental GT S: 671 HP Hybrid Grand Tourer

Bentley's grand tourer has quietly gone hybrid across the board, and the Continental GT S is the mid-tier expression of that shift -- a 671 hp plug-in hybrid that drops the brand's legendary W12 entirely in favor of a twin-turbo V8 paired with an electric motor. Bentley released an official cinematic teaser for the GT S in early 2026, and while the car itself isn't brand new to the range, it has never had a dedicated article on this site -- worth covering properly now that Bentley's YouTube channel is part of our regular sweep.

The End of the W12, the Start of Hybrid Everything

For decades, the Continental GT's signature was its W12 engine -- a smooth, absurdly complex 12-cylinder unit that defined the car's character as much as its coachbuilt looks. The current generation drops it entirely, a change that surprised plenty of longtime Bentley watchers when it was first announced. Every Continental GT sold today, from the entry-level trim through the GT S covered here up to the range-topping GT Speed, uses some version of a 4.0-litre twin-turbo V8 paired with an electric motor and a 25.9 kWh battery -- Bentley calls it a "High Performance Hybrid" on the S and a more extreme "Ultra Performance Hybrid" on the Speed. The GT S sits in the middle of that hybrid lineup: more power and sharper chassis tuning than the base Continental GT, borrowing suspension work from the range-topping GT Speed, but without the Speed's full 771 hp output.

Design and Dimensions

At 192.7 inches (4,895 mm) long, 77.4 inches (1,966 mm) wide without mirrors, and just 55 inches (1,397 mm) tall on a 112.2-inch (2,851 mm) wheelbase, the Continental GT keeps the long-hood, low-roof grand tourer proportions the nameplate has carried for two decades. The GT S doesn't change the silhouette -- its differentiation is entirely in power output, chassis tuning, and trim details like darkened brightwork and unique wheel designs, rather than a visual redesign. That restraint is deliberate: Bentley's design language across the whole hybrid-era lineup has stayed close to the previous-generation Continental GT's proportions, betting that customers value continuity of silhouette over a dramatic reinvention, even as the mechanical package underneath has changed substantially.

Layout	V8 + single electric motor
Drive	All-wheel drive
Power	671 hp combined
Torque	686 lb-ft (930 Nm)

Length	4,895 mm (192.7 in)
Width (no mirrors)	1,966 mm (77.4 in)
Height	1,397 mm (55.0 in)
Wheelbase	2,851 mm (112.2 in)

Performance and Specs

The GT S's 671 hp puts it 100 hp behind the range-topping GT Speed's 771 hp Ultra Performance Hybrid, a gap Bentley achieves mostly through electric motor tuning and software rather than a fundamentally different engine. Both share the same 25.9 kWh battery and the same basic V8-plus-motor architecture, but the GT S is positioned as the more attainable, still-brutally-fast middle option -- 3.3 seconds to 60 mph and a 190 mph top speed, figures that would have been flagship-only a decade ago. All-wheel drive is standard across the hybrid lineup, and the plug-in system allows roughly 30-50 miles of electric-only running (estimates vary by test cycle), enough for a genuinely silent morning commute before the V8 takes over for a cross-country blast. The 25.9 kWh battery also means the GT S can be charged overnight on a standard home Level 2 setup, so daily electric-only driving is realistic for owners without needing to visit a public charger regularly -- a genuinely useful capability rather than a token gesture toward electrification.

Spec	Continental GT S	Continental GT Speed (for context)
Power	671 hp	771 hp
Torque	686 lb-ft (930 Nm)	738 lb-ft (1,000 Nm)
Battery	25.9 kWh	25.9 kWh
Electric Range	~30-50 mi	~30-50 mi
0-60 mph	3.3 sec	3.1 sec
Top Speed	190 mph	Higher (exact figure not confirmed)
Drive	AWD	AWD

Interior and Technology

Bentley's pitch for the GT S leans on the same handbuilt-craftsmanship story the brand has told for a century -- diamond-quilted leather, real wood veneers cut and matched by hand, and knurled metal switchgear that feels distinctly different from the touchscreen-first cabins increasingly common even at the ultra-luxury end of the market. That said, the current Continental GT does carry a large central touchscreen alongside its analog-feeling controls, plus a digital instrument cluster and the brand's latest infotainment suite -- Bentley's approach is to layer modern tech into a fundamentally traditional cabin rather than replace the traditional cabin outright. The plug-in hybrid system adds a genuine practical wrinkle to ownership that a pure-ICE Bentley never had: owners with home or workplace charging can realistically do short errands and commutes on electric power alone, reserving the V8 for the occasions it's actually built for -- a genuinely different ownership proposition than the W12 cars this replaces, even if the driving experience at full throttle is deliberately similar.

Pricing

Bentley doesn't publish a single official US MSRP the way mainstream brands do -- dealer listings for the 2026 Continental GT S this year have ranged from roughly $306,000 to $356,000 depending on specification, with the convertible GTC S variant starting meaningfully higher, around $428,000 for a comparably-equipped example. That spread is normal for the brand: Bentley buyers routinely spec tens of thousands of dollars in personalization through Mulliner, so any single "starting price" understates what most cars actually leave the factory at. Bentley's own configurator and press materials avoid publishing a single fixed figure for exactly this reason -- the brand's business model depends on options, bespoke colors, and interior combinations that push nearly every car well past whatever base number gets quoted in outlet headlines.

How It Compares

Pros and Cons

FAQs

Verdict