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Will renewable fuel power Bentley to a Pikes Peak hat trick?

Bentley has set records at the Pikes Peak International Hill Climb with its Bentayga SUV and Continental GT coupe, but now it’s going for a hat trick, this time using renewable fuel.

A Bentley Continental GT3 race car modified to run on renewable fuel will race at the 2021 Pikes Peak hill climb, scheduled for June 27, Bentley announced Monday in a press release. Driver Rhys Millen will aim for the Time Attack 1 record, to go with the production SUV record achieved with the Bentayga in 2018, and the production car record scored with the Continental GT in 2019.

Bentley didn’t provide much detail on the fuel it planned to use, but claimed blends currently being tested could reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 85% compared to conventional gasoline or diesel.

The Continental GT3 that will be used at Pikes Peak is a modified version of a car raced in the popular GT3 category before Bentley’s exit at the end of 2020. Bentley plans to work with two race teams—United Kingdom-based Fastr and United States-based K-Pax Racing—to run Pikes Peak, with technical assistance from U.K. firm M-Sport.

Bentley Continental GT3 Pikes Peak

Itself a modified version of the Continental GT road car, the GT3 will get additional modifications for Pikes Peak, including the largest rear wing ever fitted to a Bentley and an equally massive rear diffuser and two-plane front splitter. Power comes from the same twin-turbocharged 4.0-liter V-8 used in the road car, but it’s modified to run on renewable fuel and produce adequate power at Pikes Peak’s high altitude (the starting line is at 9,300 feet above sea level and the finish line is at 14,100 feet).

Bentley plans to begin testing the Continental GT3 Pikes Peak race car in the U.K. before shipping it to the U.S. for high-altitude testing. A progress report will be released in May, ahead of the running of the hill climb in June.

Bentley isn’t the only automaker investigating alternatives to conventional fossil fuels. Porsche is testing synthetic fuel made using methanol in its own race cars, and is working with multiple partners on a pilot plant in Chile to produce the fuel.

If all goes according to plan, though, renewable fuel will have a fairly short useful life in new Bentley road cars. Bentley plans to launch its first electric car in 2025, and go all-electric by 2030.

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April 12, 2021
Jay Leno looks at a hybrid from 1916

The Toyota Prius may have popularized the concept, but hybrid cars existed long before the now-ubiquitous Toyota hatchback. The Owen Magnetic featured on this episode of Jay Leno’s Garage dates to 1916—about 80 years before the Prius launched.

It’s important to remember that, at the turn of the 20th century, battery-electric cars were quite common. But just like today, they were limited by range and charging infrastructure. The Owen Magnetic was pitched as an electric car with a range-extending gasoline generator—not unlike the former Chevrolet Volt or the BMW i3 REx.

The car is a series hybrid, with the internal-combustion engine acting exclusively as a generator for an electric motor, which actually drives the wheels, rather than a parallel hybrid, like most modern hybrid cars.

1916 Owen Magnetic on Jay Leno’s Garage

The Buda inline-6 engine isn’t physically connected to the drivetrain. A horseshoe magnet is attached to the end of the crankshaft, which spins around an armature attached to an electric motor, which in turn drives the rear wheels. In 1916, an advantage of this setup was that it did away with a conventional transmission, making the Owen Magnetic accessible to people who couldn’t drive stick, Leno noted. It also enables regenerative braking, just like modern hybrids and electric cars.

Leno has had this car for about 30 years, and it was not in good condition when he got it, as it had sat exposed to the elements for decades in Norway. With no reproduction parts available for this exceedingly rare car, Leno’s shop had to fabricate nearly everything. The distinctive angled valve cover with “Owen Magnetic” lettering was replicated using 3D printing. Leno also installed modern Optima batteries.

Watch the full video to see this piece of hybrid history cruising around the streets surrounding Leno’s famous garage.

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April 11, 2021
2021 Ford Mustang Mach 1, 2021 Mercedes-Benz AMG GLB35, 2024 GMC Hummer EV SUV: This Week’s Top Photos

Ford may have just launched an electric Mustang crossover but old-school muscle car fans have their own Mustang model to look forward to in 2021, and it’s wearing the Mach 1 badge. The car is a fantastic mash-up of GT350 and Bullitt parts, and we’ve got a full review up.

2021 Mercedes-Benz AMG GLB35

Another vehicle we tested this week was the 2021 Mercedes-Benz AMG GLB35. This compact crossover has 302 hp, third-row seats, and loads of tech, and it’s quite reasonably priced at about $50,000.

2022 Mercedes-Benz CLS-Class

Another Mercedes in the headlines this week was the updated 2022 CLS-Class. The latest updates bring revised styling inside and out, plus some new technology, but sadly there’s no longer an AMG option for U.S. customers.

Pagani Zonda Revolucion road-car conversion – Photo credit: @tfjj/Lanzante

Pagani built just five examples of its Zonda Revolucion track special early last decade, and this week we learned that one of them has been made legal on the street. The conversion to a road car was handled by the folks at Lanzante, which has performed similar conversions in the past for track cars like the McLaren P1 GTR.

2024 GMC Hummer EV SUV

For fans of electric vehicles, GMC unveiled the 2024 Hummer EV SUV. The SUV shares its platform and powertrain with the Hummer EV pickup truck, but the wheelbase is shorter and the design has some strong H3 vibes. While the pickup starts production this fall, the SUV won’t show up until spring 2023.

2022 Toyota GR 86 and 2022 Subaru BRZ

Another new vehicle that made its debut this week was the 2022 Toyota 86. The second-generation sports coupe is once again a twin with the Subaru BRZ, and like the BRZ it gets a 2.4-liter flat-4, rear-wheel drive, and a choice of manual or automatic transmissions.

2021 Ford Explorer Enthusiast ST

You can now get the looks and performance of Ford’s Explorer ST for about $4,000 less. The Blue Oval this week revealed a new Explorer Enthusiast ST for the 2021 model year with the same 400-hp powertrain as the regular Explorer ST but minus some of the vehicle’s luxury items.

2022 Porsche Macan facelift spy shots – Photo credit: S. Baldauf/SB-Medien

Porsche will keep the current Macan on sale when a new battery-electric version of the crossover arrives in 2022, but there will be some updates made to it. As our latest spy shots reveal, the current Macan will receive a few tweaks that will likely align its styling and tech with the forthcoming electric Macan.

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April 10, 2021