BENTLEY has cheapened its Continental GTC range. However, instead of stripping out refinement the British luxury marque has done all its cost-cutting under the bonnet.

Out is the old twin-turbo 6.0-litre W12 – essentially two V6 engines bolted together in a W formation – and in comes a smaller twin-turbo 4.0-litre V8 that is used extensively across Bentley’s parent company, the Volkswagen Group.

The move cuts about $40,000 from the list price of the Continental GTC and cuts emissions by about 30 per cent when compared with the bigger engine.

But Bentleys have always been about that ability to waft from A to B with minimal effort.

Does downsizing turn Bentley’s most affordable drop-top model from a white stallion to little more than a pit pony?

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