Bentley has pushed the boundaries of performance grand touring with the 2022 Bentley Continental GT Speed.

Moving away from the philosophy of previous Speed models, Bentley has focused on improving the handling and driving dynamics, making the new Continental GT Speed the most dynamic road car in Bentley's history.

The company has introduced its most advanced chassis built using four chassis technologies that give the Continental GT Speed a new level of agility, performance and ride quality, improving the cars driving characteristics.

The Bentley Dynamic Ride and three-chamber active air suspension with adaptive damping help the new GT speed maintain the balance of the car while going through turns and bad roads while the addition of rear-wheel steering helps turn the car better at low and medium speed by turning the rear wheels in the opposite direction to the front wheels by up to four degrees.

The Continental GT Speed becomes the first Bentley to use an electronic limited-slip differential (eLSD).  Tuned hand-in-hand with the traction control and active chassis system, the eLSD adds high-speed traction, improved lateral capacity and longitudinal stability.

The rearward biased all-wheel-drive system of the new Continental GT Speed combined with the intelligent eLSD and electronic stability control gives the driver a greater level of freedom before the safety systems intervene to correct any animalities. This clever combination makes this Bentley a born drifter.

The car also features the world's largest carbon-ceramic brake that stands 440 mm in diameter with a ten-piston calliper. The brakes have been designed specially to provide class-leading braking performance with copper-free brake friction material for reduced environmental impact.

The new carbon-ceramic brakes reduce the car's weight by around 33 kg, helping lower the car's inertia and aid handling.

In terms of the engine, the Continental GT Speed continues to carry forward the 6.0l twin-turbo W12 engine from the standard model with a slight increase in power to 650 hp. This increase in power translates to shaving a tenth off the 0-100 kmph time and an increase in top speed from 332-335 kmph.

Aesthetically, the Continental GT Speed features a blacked-out front grille with slightly redesigned side sills and 22-inch rims as standard. On the inside, there is a new dual-tone colour split for the leather and embroidered Speed badges on the headrests. (MT)

Mumbai-based automotive major Mahindra & Mahindra has announced its wholesales for April 2025 at 84,170 vehicles, a growth of 19 percent, including exports.

The auto major sold a total of 52,330 SUVs in the domestic market, which was 28 percent higher than 41,008 SUVs sold for the same period last year. Commercial vehicle sales in the domestic market came at 22,989 units, which was 4 percent YoY. 

Veejay Nakra, President, Automotive Division, Mahindra & Mahindra, said, “Building on the strong momentum of last year's performance, we began the year on a strong note in April by achieving SUV sales of 52,330 units, a growth of 28 percent and total vehicle sales of 84,170 units, a 19 percent growth over the same month last year. These numbers indicate the strength of our portfolio and customer offerings.”

JSW MG Motor India, a leading passenger vehicles manufacturer, has announced its wholesales for April 2025.

The company reported sales of 5,829 units, which was 23 percent higher over April 2024, when it sold 4,725 vehicles.

Interestingly, the automaker's popular offering, the Windsor EV, has continued to be the top-selling electric passenger vehicle for the seventh month in a row.

JSW MG Motor India's Windsor EV has now gone home to over 20,000 customers.

Maruti Suzuki India, the country’s largest carmaker, has reported its wholesales of 179,791 units in April 2025, marking a 7 percent increase compared to 168,089 units sold in April 2024. The growth was primarily propelled by strong performance in utility vehicles and a sharp rise in export volumes.

Domestic sales, including passenger and light commercial vehicles, remained flat with 142,053 units, as compared to 140,448 units in April 2024. Within this, light commercial vehicles (LCVs) like the Super Carry saw a significant jump of 34.2 percent, with sales rising to 3,349 units from 2,496 units last year.

In the passenger vehicle segment, SUVs such as the Brezza, Ertiga, Grand Vitara and others recorded a 4.4 percent increase, selling 59,022 units compared to 56,553 in the previous year. However, sales for Eeco declined by 5.2 percent, while the mini segment (Alto, S-Presso) saw a sharp 45 percent drop, falling to 6,332 units from 11,519 units. The compact segment, which includes high-volume models like the Baleno and Swift, grew by 8.1 percent, reaching 61,591 units.

Sales to Toyota Kirloskar Motor rose sharply by 79.2 percent, from 5,481 units to 9,827 units, indicating a growing demand for cross-badged products.

The standout performer was the export segment, which surged 26 percent to 27,911 units from 22,160 units in April 2024. This strong export growth helped bolster the company’s overall numbers despite weaknesses in domestic sub-segments.

While some product lines such as the mid-size sedan Ciaz (-63 percent) continue to struggle.

Tata Motors reported total wholesales of 72,753 units for April 2025, reflecting a 6 percent year-on-year decline from 77,521 units in April 2024.

The passenger vehicle (PV) segment, including electric vehicles, accounted for 45,532 units, down 5 percent from 47,983 units in the same month last year. Within this, domestic PV sales dropped 6 percent to 45,199 units, while international business (IB) sales rose significantly to 333 units, up from 100 units. Electric vehicle sales (domestic + IB) declined 16 percent year-on-year to 5,318 units.

Commercial vehicle (CV) sales stood at 27,221 units, marking an 8 percent YoY drop from 29,538 units in April 2024. Domestic CV sales contracted 10 percent to 25,764 units, while CV exports (IB) grew 43 percent to 1,457 units. Key sub-segments like Small Commercial Vehicles (SCV) and pickups saw a steep 23 percent decline.

Despite growth in certain categories like ILMCV trucks and passenger carriers, overall sales momentum was tempered across both PV and CV segments.