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Bentley EXP 100 GT concept envisions luxe life in 2035

When James Bond made his first appearance in an Ian Fleming novel in 1953, he drove a 1931 Bentley Blower. If 007 finally retired in 2035, he'd probably choose the EXP 100 GT.

The new all-electric concept was designed and built by super-posh Bentley Motors to celebrate its 100th birthday and envision the driving experience 15 years from now. The result luxuriates in space, light, and pricey, eco-sourced materials.

As for the details, where to start? There's a lot: It's sleek and muscular, has incredibly long upward pivoting doors, and yet manages to pull off a design air of restrained refinement even though it is seriously fast.

And it's roomy. Wanna push the seat way back while your autonomous driver takes the wheel? No problem. Your passenger can push back too -- all the way to the back seat if desired. And it's topped with a glass roof "embedded with prisms" that is a little reminiscent of a cathedral window, so occupants feel like they are in a sacred and important safe space while they gaze up at the heavens. Do you hear the angels singing?

Bentley thinks the design is Grand Touring reimagined. It's the journey -- or more precisely, what you take the journey in -- and not the destination. Get in, and you have already arrived.

Made from lightweight aluminum and carbon fiber, the Bentley EXP (experimental) 100 GT measures 5.8 m long and almost 2.4 m wide. That makes it almost as long as the 2017 Rolls-Royce Phantom VIII EWB (5.9 m), the longest sedan out there, but the Rolls is a four-seater!

The driver and passenger doors are 2 m wide and pivot outward and upward. Fully open, they rise to almost 3 m off the ground. We guess the garages of the future are taller, too.

The exterior lighting is both dynamic and dramatic. A focal point is the smart, illuminated matrix grille and Flying B mascot, which come to life when you approach the car. There is light playing across the grille, through the mascot, and all along the bonnet central spine of the car and into the cabin itself. This car wants you to think it's alive.

Bentley says the round headlights that overlap the grille are a nod to the famous Bentley Blower. Hey, that's the first 007 car!

At the back is a neat feature. A "horseshoe" section of the rear end is a 3D OLED screen where lighting effects blend in with the rear lamps. This design hints at all kinds of extra lighting effects being incorporated into car exteriors in the future. These lights play alongside and in concert with the standard tail lights.

The two-door's power plant features a battery electric powertrain with intelligent power and charge management. Next Generation Traction Drive enables maximum control via torque vectoring, applying 50 percent increased power and 35 percent less mass for more effective cornering. The battery system powers four motors that will do 0 to 100 km (0 to 60 mph) in less than 2.5 sec, a top speed of 300 kph (186 mph), and maximum torque of 1,500 Nm.

Since Bentley is dreaming big, future battery tech will offer five times the conventional energy density, and charging the Bentley EXP 100 GT to 80 percent of capacity will take only 15 min. Charging is automatically taken care of by the Bentley Personal Assistant. Weight is 1,900 kg (4,188 lb), and a range of 700 km (435 miles) will be possible.

The Bentley EXP 100 GT has passive and active air intakes in the front grille, cooling the drivetrain and batteries that drive the car's powerful electric motors. Unwanted air is channeled out of the car at the rear to aid aerodynamics.

All displays use a simple, intuitive interface that includes transparent OLED information displays in the doors, automatically darkening glass, and a front entertainment screen for displaying films, live video, and other media when the Bentley EXP 100 GT is in autonomous driving mode. What is truly remarkable to our conditioned "future-look" response is the lack of information displays that are in full view initially. You just don't see them! That, truly, is different.

The Bentley EXP 100 GT is optionally autonomous. The Bentley Personal Assistant AI can curate personal driving experiences, offering points of information along a route, journey suggestions, or "available luxury experiences nearby."

Key to creating a pampered feel is a range of features based on passenger well-being and comfort. These include Active Aero Wheels that dynamically adjust to deliver efficiency or maximum performance feel; Intelligent Pirelli Tires that adapt their contact patches based on weather conditions or driver demand; and Adaptable Biometric Seating that adapts to the driver mode or swivels rearward with the steering wheel retracted away in autonomous mode.

The Bentley Personal Assistant offers a highly personalized experience to the passengers based on five distinct modes with individual characteristics: Enhance, Cocoon, Capture, Re-Live, and Customize. Interaction with the AI is made through hand gestures made to the front or rear light-up Cumbria Crystal interfaces that intuitively interpret the commands. Wow, now this is real spaceship-control stuff! We bet you thought that was just a glass center tray.

Rotary switches fashioned from copper and aluminium add some traditional tactility in a digital world.

Cocoon creates a protective space, including air purification and glass areas that turn opaque for privacy; while Capture records experiences from both inside and outside the car which become part of your car's unique history. Re-Live replays highlights of your Grand Tour on multiple screens that can be shared, while Customize combines elements of all the different modes and are individually selected by the driver or passenger.

Bentley has collaborated with carefully selected industry experts to provide exceptional materials in the Bentley EXP 100 GT. All use sustainable and innovative techniques for customers "who are environmentally conscious and ethical in their brand choice."

Among them is the rare Copper Infused Riverwood, a sustainable wood from naturally fallen trees that has been preserved for 5,000 years in peat bogs, lakes, and rivers. The Riverwood is featured in the cabin and has been sourced from The Fenland Black Oak Project, a British organization set up to preserve this material for future generations.

Hand and Lock is the London-based embroidery company that employs exquisite, traditional techniques that date back to 1767 and are used on Royal and Military Dress uniforms. Their techniques are primarily used on the door panels of the Bentley EXP 100 GT, creating a seamless integration between different materials and a beautiful contemporary embroidery pattern.

Bridge of Weir Leather of Scotland works with specifically selected, locally sourced hides for Bentley to create a soft, natural leather enhanced by its environment. With the ultimate Super Natural finish, this will be Bentley's benchmark for future luxury alternative materials.

Finally, in an exclusive collaboration, Bentley has used the by-products of wine-making to create the future of luxury eco-materials, creating a leather-like seating material that is 100 percent bio-based.

The new exterior paint color, called Compass, is created using a special Colourstream pigment that reflects a beautiful spectrum of autumnal colors and is both sustainable and environmentally friendly. The pigment is synthetically made using rice husk ash, a harmful bi-product of the rice industry, remanufactured for the Bentley EXP 100 GT to reduce the amount that ends up in landfill waste.

The Air Purification System is located in the trunk space to purify air before it is supplied into the cabin, with deployable air vents on the rear passenger shelf and static vents on the front passenger panel. The air vents undulate, giving the appearance that the car is breathing and alive. Meanwhile, CO2 levels in the cabin are constantly monitored to maintain air quality.

Bentley has also developed it own, unique "new car" scent for the Bentley EXP 100 GT. It's sandalwood and fresh moss.

VIDEO: Auto enthusiast Tim Burton (Shmee150) gives an in-depth tour of the Bentley EXP 100 GT concept at the car's unveiling in Crewe, England.

And why get out of the car to get something in the trunk? A Cartridge Delivery System can deliver items from under the bonnet storage area into the cabin itself. Now that is some creative thinking.

So when you finally decide to come clean in 15 years that you cashed in your huge Bitcoin hoard long ago and are a secret multi-millionaire, you may be looking for the sweetest upper-crust ride available in 2035. Nice to know that Bentley already has you covered.

Source: Bentley Motors

Published September 2019

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