Bentley Continental GT loses its head

The surprise is tweed hasn’t been used in this way before. Is there a material more associated with Britishness and keeping warm and dry in a harsh climate than tweed? Perfect for a convertible then, and given tweed’s associations with aristocracy, countryside and all manner of outdoor pursuits, perfect for a luxury Bentley convertible.

The fashion first from Crewe is, of course, one small part in the reinvention of the convertible version of Bentley’s most popular model, the GT coupe, foundation of its latterday success since it first arrived under the VW Group banner in 2003. As you would expect it is in essence the coupe without its roof, but being based on the new, third-gen Continental GT that went on sale earlier this year, it takes the game on in lots of ways over its convertible predecessor.

For starters the bare body shell is more torsionally rigid but lighter (by 20 per cent, says Bentley) than the outgoing convertible. It’s still a mix of aluminium and steel but now it’s a cleverer mix. It remains a hefty car – the outgoing model weighed in at two and a half tonnes – but there’s a 635PS (626bhp) W12 monster engine bursting with 900Nm (664lb ft) of torque, an eight-speed automatic transmission and all-wheel-drive to take care of that.

Expect the weight penalty over the latest coupe to be less than it has been in the past. That’s what the performance figures tell us. With 0-62mph in 3.8secs, the new convertible is just a tenth slower than the coupe while top speed with the hood up is quoted as 207mph, exactly the same as the fixed head.

The new hood – it doesn’t have to be tweed by the way, seven colours are offered besides  – also delivers in terms of refinement. Bentley says its new model is 3dB quieter for cruising than the outgoing convertible, which makes it no noisier than previous-generation coupe.

This is down to a new Z-fold roof. Its mechanism, insulation, seals and acoustic properties are all new and, apart from the extra hush in what is anyway a very quiet car, delivers packaging benefits. The roof goes up or down in 19 seconds at speeds up to 30mph.

The styling makeover that distinguishes the latest coupe, with which it shares the majority of its body, is just as effective here. The longer and lower nose, new feature lines and, sign of a true Conti, muscular rear haunches are just as prominent. It is all very grand in its finely-crafted extravagance but also more sporting and less bulky looking than before. Top up or down you will struggle to find an awkward angle.

There’s a good chance you will stay snug without resorting to the tweed outerwear. There’s a new, quieter, neck-warming blower built into the seats, plus the seats themselves, the steering wheel and the armrests are all heated.

The convertible, with its 2+2 seating, inherits all the advances from the coupe in terms of digital displays and connectivity, luxury materials and latest chassis technologies. The dash features the same three-sided rotating centre display as the coupe. It’s a 12.3-inch touchscreen that when you get tired of its icons and menus can rotate to show instead a trio of actual analogue dials, a temperature  gauge, compass and chronometer.

Luxury materials? There’s plenty going on in that department, from the cut-glass effect lights to the eucalyptus veneers and pillow-knurled switches (mechanical knurling is very last year). There’s over 10 sq m of wood in each cabin, not including the option of a wooden-rimmed steering wheel. Then there’s the Mulliner programme for serious bespoking…

With the convertible odds on to inherit the new coupe’s added agility, thanks to the new active all-wheel-drive set-up and 48-volt anti-roll control system, Bentley says the GT convertible represents the pinnacle of open-top luxury grand touring.

Not a bad way to start 2019 and your 100th year in business then. Just don’t forget the tweed top!