Bentley's Rotating Display in the Continental GT Will have you Feeling Like James Bond!

TopSpeed

By Ciprian Florea

Published Sep 1, 2017

Big screen or wood veneer? Why not both?

The third-generation Bentley Continental broke cover the other day with a brand-new design and a ton of cool features. Inspired by the cool EXP 10 Speed 6 concept on the outside and powered by a new W-12 engine that cranks out more power than most Ferrari-built V-8s and V-12s, the new Continental GT also boasts a new interior packed with a huge amount of luxury features and technology. But, while the new Koa wood veneer and the "diamond-in-diamond" upholstery are pretty impressive, it's the Rotating Display that blew me away.

While I'm not a big fan of fancy gadgets, I must admit that the Rotating Display is one of the main reasons why I've fallen in love with the new Conti GT. Let's face it, it's the kind of feature you'd find in one of James Bond's car, along with machine guns hidden behind the headlamps. And known James' weakness for British cars, I wouldn't be surprised to see the grand tourer in the next film. So why am I so excited it about this? Well, I like clean dashboards with massive wood veneers as much as I enjoy high-resolution screens. Having both was impossible until now, so it's like a dream come true.

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Three Designs in One Rotating Device

Now, what more could you want? Fancy a big infotainment display to get all the info you need in a high, laptop-worthy resolution? No problem! Just start the car, and the wood veneer disappears inside the dash to make way for the huge 12.3-inch screen. You like things clean and simple like me? Just deactivate the screen and enjoy a vintage-inspired dashboard with a big slab of wood above the center stack. Sexy as hell! But what if you like a bit more class? Like three analogue clocks on the center dash? Well, the rotating display has that too. The third side reveals three dials diplaying outside temperature, a compass, and a chronometer, and they look as stylish as they get. The aluminum rim is complemented by a carbon fiber ring and a carbon fiber center section, there's another gold ring around the white dials, and the needle has a red stripe. Classy, yet modern.

I guess it's also worth mentioning that the Rotating Display is an industry-first feature. This is good for Bentley, but it should become the norm for premium automakers. And, while we're talking about rotating gadgets, the McLaren 720S comes with a similar instrument cluster that turns into a thin display so you can focus on the road ahead while racing at the Nurburgring, or whatever track you enjoy. I definitely want to see both features built into the same car. Are you reading this Ferrari?