It would be entirely fair to record that Bentley didn't reinvent the wheel inside the revised Continental – if it weren’t for the fact that a new steering wheel is actually chief among the revisions. The new tiller is smaller in diameter than before and it also acts on the front wheels via a slightly faster steering rack.
Most of the cabin is carried over from the superseded car, however. In our test car, soft embroidered leathers, attractive walnut veneers, handmade aluminium fascia inserts and chrome-bezelled control dials all contributed to a superbly rich and luxurious ‘old English’ cabin ambience that few car makers can pull off.
Fit and finish in our test cars has been excellent – as it should be from Crewe’s self-proclaimed ‘master craftsmen’, whose attention to detail would still seem to be the envy of the industry.
The biggest substantive difference inside comes courtesy of two new, slimmed-down, scalloped front seats, which, claims Bentley, liberate an extra 46mm of legroom for rear passengers. The extra space is welcome, but it doesn’t transform the GT into a car fit for four adults. In the back, headroom for anyone over six feet tall is still tight.
Up front, while the new touchscreen multimedia system is welcome, and even though the system is developed in house there’s still room for improvement in some areas. The ergonomics of the column stalks leaves a little to be desired, too; you’ll lose count of the number of times you tug on the left-hand gearchange paddle while you’re fumbling for the indicators.
Equally frustrating is the fact that changing the damper settings from Comfort, through two intermediate settings, to Sport means pressing a button on the transmission tunnel and then cycling through a menu on the fascia-mounted touchscreen.
Buyers now have a wealth of options to choose from before they get the opportunity to make their Conti bespoke. First decision is whether to opt for the Coupé or go for the convertible, then whether to choose the 6.0-litre W12 or 4.0-litre V8 engines.
Even then the decision-making isn't over as there are multiple models to choose from, including the standard GT in 582bhp W12 or 500bhp V8 forms, for those wanting a bit more poise and speed the Speed versions are available producing 626bhp and 520bhp respectively, while those wanting a road-going version of the GT3 race car are catered from with the 572bhp 4.0-litre V8 GT3-R.
