VUE

A s you walk through the corridors of Bent- ley's 1946 factory in Crewe, England, you can still spot stacks of wood logs and a newspaper clipping-like copy of the U.K.'s 1974 Woodworking Machine Regulations. In an adjacent room, you'll come face-to-face with a 19-foot battery-electric vehicle—the Bentley EXP 100 GT. e futuristic concept car is something of a window into the brand's innovative horizon. With the exterior evoking a glossy, technological dreamscape and an interior besting the imaginations behind "Blade Runner 2049," the EXP 100 GT is Bentley's aim for the grand tourer in 2035. In a presentation reminiscent of your fondest planetarium memory, the concept rolled out to meet Bentley Motors Chairman and CEO, Adrian Hallmark, in autonomous fashion. Rivaling the size of a Range Rover, its sleek proportions camouflage its reflective expanse. Circular headlights bleed into its illuminated front grill with over 6,000 LED lights—greeting the driver like a wall of crystalline. Featuring Bentley's R-Type continental haunch at the rear and six-foot-wide doors that pivot outwards and upwards, the EXP 100 GT is unmistakably Bentley but uniquely its own. Its electric powertrain battery system powers four motors— which claims 1,100 -lb of torque, 1,400 horsepower, zero to 60 in just 2.5 seconds and top speeds of 186 mph. Using a futuristic battery said to have five times the energy density, the EXP 100 GT's also boasts a 435-mile range and a solid- state battery that can be charged at a 500 KW to 80 percent capacity in just a short 15-minute window. V U E N J . C O M 155

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