Autobayng News Team
- Bentley teases its first EV under a semi-transparent veil, revealing the outline of its production body.
- The company also revealed that it can add 100 miles of range in 7 minutes of charging.
- Plug-in hybrid models will stick around for longer than previously announced, possibly even after 2035.
Bentley isn’t convinced that it should go all-electric in the next 10 years anymore. Its first electric vehicle, an SUV related to the upcoming Porsche Cayenne EV, is still on track to be revealed next year and go on sale in 2027, but it will share the Bentley lineup with new electrified combustion models.
The plan announced a few years ago was for Bentley to stop production of all kinds of combustion cars after 2030, but it later moved the deadline to 2035. But in a recent announcement, the company has revealed yet another change of plan with “a revised product cadence plan that includes extending the offer of internal combustion-engined as well as plug-in hybridized models.”
It confirmed that it will continue selling cars like the Continental GT and Flying Spur “until at least 2035,” and likely also beyond that point. This will ultimately be driven by customer demand, and Bentley says its customers have shown considerable interest in its plug-in hybrid offerings.
Photo by: Bentley
Photo by: Bentley
Photos by: Bentley
Interestingly, in the ultra-exclusive segment where Rolls-Royce sells the Spectre, EV adoption is surprisingly high, which means that the switch to pure battery electric could happen quicker than in cheaper segments.
Bentley also gave us our first look at its still unnamed EV, which it brands as “the world’s first true luxury urban SUV.” It also shared a teaser shot of the finished production model hiding under a partly see-through cover, which reveals it will have horizontal daytime running lights and taillights. Its profile is lower than the Bentayga, which will remain Bentley’s larger and more luxurious SUV offering.
It is expected to draw influence from the EXP 15 concept, although even through the cover, it’s pretty clear that it has quite different proportions, and it doesn’t look like a production version of that design study. What will influence the production model is the concept’s lower stance, which is midway between an SUV and a fastback. You can also just about make out that the production model’s greenhouse isn’t very tall, giving it a similar chop top aesthetic.
Charging the electric SUV for seven minutes will add 100 miles of range, according to Bentley. It hasn’t confirmed the charging power numbers for the model yet. But we can draw hints from the Cayenne EV, with which it shares its platform, so we can anticipate that it will charge at up to 400 kW, and it could even have the same battery pack with a usable capacity of 108 kWh. The Porsche goes from 10% to 80% in a remarkable 16 minutes, so the Bentley should be very similar in this respect.
Porsche says the Cayenne will be able to cover over 600 km or around 372 miles on one charge on the WLTP test cycle. The Bentley should be around there, too, if it does indeed have the same capacity battery.
Production will begin at Bentley’s historic Crewe site, which the manufacturer is in the process of expanding and tooling for EV production. The facility will be fully operational by mid-2026, and it will serve as the hub for the brand’s rollout of electric models. More On This We want your opinion! What would you like to see on Insideevs.com? – The InsideEVs team
