The Bentley Continental GT3 Pikes Peak to run on renewable fuel

Bentley‘s ambitious and transformational Beyond100 programme will see the brand become the world’s leading sustainable luxury mobility company. As a part of its major sustainability initiative, the British luxury carmaker has modified the iconic Continental GT3 Pikes Peak to compete for the Time Attack 1 record at this year’s Pikes Peak International Hill Climb. Bentley, the sports car, will be the first competition to run on renewable fuel, ahead of a goal to offer sustainable fuels to Bentley’s customers around the world.

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The company has already started its tests for various blends of fuels currently being tested and evaluated, with possible Greenhouse Gas (GHG) reductions of up to 85% over standard fossil fuel. The Continental GT3 running of biofuels marks the start of a more extended programme that will investigate both biofuels and e-fuels for their potential to power the Bentleys of past and present in a sustainable way.

The car is set to manoeuvre 156 corners, at an average speed of more than 78 mph, to cross the finish line in less than nine minutes and 36 seconds. The 5000 ft climb starts at 9,300 ft, and the course climbs to 14,100 ft – where the air is 1/3 less dense than at sea level. To help achieve this ambitious target, Bentley has once again turned to three-time Pikes Peak champion and former ‘King of the Mountain’ Rhys Millen (NZ) – who holds individual class records. It was with Millen that Bentley captured its two existing Pikes Peak records – the Production SUV record attained in 2018 with a Bentayga W12, and the outright Production Car record scored in 2019 with a Continental GT.

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Bentley’s Member of the Board for Engineering, Dr Matthias Rabe, commented, “We are delighted to be returning to Pikes Peak for a third time – now powered by renewable fuel, as the launch project for another new element of our Beyond100 programme. Our powertrain engineers are already researching both biofuels and e-fuels for use by our customers alongside our electrification programme – with intermediate steps of adopting renewable fuels at the factory in Crewe and for our company fleet. In the meantime, the Continental GT3 Pikes Peak will show that renewable fuels can allow motorsport to continue in a responsible way, and hopefully it will capture the third and final record in our triple crown.”

Photo Credit: Bentley

Considering the terrain and requirements of the race, Bentley has upped its game with significant modifications to its aerodynamics package and its engine, turning it into the most extreme iteration of a Continental GT – or any Bentley road car ever. The biggest rear wing ever fitted to a Bentley dominates the rear of the vehicle. Sitting above a highly efficient rear diffuser that surrounds the transaxle gearbox are some other evident changes. The brand has also worked on the rear aerodynamic package by balancing it with a two-plane splitter at the front, flanked by separate dive planes. For the engine, the Continental GT3 Pikes Peak possesses Bentley’s proven racing power unit, developed from the 4.0-litre turbo V8 fitted to the Continental GT V8. Further modifications include cooling air scoops in place of the rear windows, and the obligatory stopwatch mounted to the roll cage next to the steering wheel to allow Rhys Millen to keep track of his sector times up the mountain.

Check out more images of the Bentley Continental GT3.

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