Focusing on a luxury SUV for urban use will help to offset the extra weight and size required by the batteries in an EV. It will also make range less of an issue than it would be for a model sitting alongside the Continental GT.
As previously reported by Autocar, the new model will sit on the Volkswagen Group’s new PPE bespoke electric platform, which has been co-developed by Audi and Porsche and is used for the new Audi Q6 E-tron and Porsche Macan Electric. This could hint at the broad size and performance of the Bentley EV.
However, speaking to Autocar recently, Walliser – who previously worked at Porsche – said it would be “completely wrong” for Bentley to develop a model that was “anything like” one that the Stuttgart-based firm would produce.
The PPE platform allows for a range of layouts, including single- and twin-motor options, the latter offering all-wheel drive. It can also accept a range of battery sizes and motor types, while its 800V architecture enables ultra-fast charging.
Bentley design chief Robin Page has already said the new model will retain many of the firm’s historic design cues while featuring a new front-end design to reflect the lack of a combustion engine. Extensive offerings from Bentley’s Mulliner customisation division are also likely to be key to making the model a true luxury car.
Notably, the decision to produce an ‘urban SUV’ distances Bentley’s first EV from new electric rivals such as the Rolls-Royce Spectre saloon.
Crewe development key to future line-up
The Beyond100+ business plan also includes what Bentley has termed a “fundamental reinvention” of the manufacturing infrastructure at its long-running Crewe plant. This will “secure” its future as the home of “the next generation of products”.
The new investment programme in the 85-year-old site will, Bentley says, be largely self-funded. It will include a new design centre, paint shop and EV assembly line, which, the firm claims, will set new benchmarks in “digital, flexible and high-value manufacturing operations”. Bentley says the aim is to turn the plant into a “dream factory” for its fully electric future.
