THE Bentley EXP 100 GT , the British brand's centenary gift to us, may well be the most faithful portrait of what a Bentley grand tourer will be in 2035. Not only in terms of aesthetics, but above all in terms of technology and sustainability.
That's the focus of the EXP 100 GT, a rolling manifesto of what sustainable luxury mobility will be, built on two pillars, autonomous driving and powered by electricity.
It is an enormous coupé — 5.8 m long and approximately 2.4 m wide — with two access doors also of enormous dimensions (two meters each). They open outward and upward, standing nearly ten feet off the ground at their highest point.
Its design refers to the same premises as the Continental GT, albeit with somewhat different proportions — the absence of an internal combustion engine allows for a shorter front end. The visual elements we know from Bentley are present, even if reinterpreted or repositioned: take a look, for example, at the way the headlights now interact with the grille.
Stefan Sielaff, Bentley Design DirectorThe Bentley EXP 100 GT represents the kind of cars we want to make in the future. Like the iconic Bentleys of yesteryear, this car connects with its passengers' emotions and helps them experience and safeguard the memories of the truly extraordinary journeys they take.
Lightweight… 1900 kg
Despite the vast dimensions, superior to any current Bentley, the British brand predicts a weight of "only" 1900 kg for its EXP 100 GT — a Continental GT has 350 kg more — a notable value even for the fact that it is 100% electric. . It reveals not only the use of materials such as aluminum and carbon fiber, but above all, the expected evolution of the batteries of the future.
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According to Bentley, these will offer five times more density than the current ones, which will allow a reduction in the number of batteries to be installed in the car, resulting in a reduction in mass, in addition to allowing for greater distances — the EXP 100 GT is advertised with a maximum possible range of 700 km . The batteries can also be charged up to 80% of their capacity in just 15 minutes.
There will be four electric motors, ensuring four-wheel drive and torque vectorization. The services provided in a straight line could well be those of a super sports car: less than 2.5s to reach 100 km/h and a maximum speed of 300 km/h. We don't know what the maximum power is, but Bentley advertises a maximum of 1500 Nm of torque (!).
Personal assistant
In addition to the opulence it emanates, whether through the sustainable materials chosen for its interior — from 5,000-year-old Riverwood wood (submerged wood) with copper infusions, to organic textile coatings derived from the production of wine that looks like skin, wool rugs, and cotton-lined interior surfaces — the biggest highlight is perhaps the personal assistant or the Bentley Personal Assistant AI.
Its mission is to offer a customizable user experience to passengers, through five distinct modes: Enhance, Cocoon, Capture, Re-Live and Customize. Interaction with the AI (artificial intelligence) is carried out via hand gestures in front of or behind the Crystal Cumbria which is located in the middle of the interior.
Bentley Personal Assistant AI
The Enhance mode brings exterior stimuli such as light, sound and even smells inside, offering a holistic journey, as if it were almost a convertible. Cocoon mode creates a protective space, purifies the air and even makes certain glazed areas opaque. Capture mode… captures experiences both in and out of the car, which will become part of each car's unique history that we can remember with Re-Live mode.
The interfaces use augmented reality, OLED displays and a front screen that lets you watch movies and other media when the EXP 100 GT is used as an autonomous vehicle.
Manifest
The EXP 100 GT follows an already long line of Bentley prototypes, which in one way or another anticipated what to expect from its future models. Despite being perhaps the most futuristic of the various EXP prototypes, let's not dismiss it as a superficial exercise — it's a manifesto of intent, both from a visual, material and technological point of view.
