Bentley to Focus on Hybrid Car Development

Jakarta (ANTARA) - The British luxury car brand Bentley has revealed that it will focus on developing hybrid vehicles, rather than launching electric cars.

As reported by Arena EV on Sunday (22/3) local time, Bentley’s CEO Frank Walliser explained that the company must rethink its entire product line.

He noted that their current plans look very different compared to two years ago, with this shift being part of a trend currently prominent in the automotive industry.

Previously, the company had announced plans to transition from its initial intention to launch five new electric cars by 2035.

However, the decision was made considering that car buyers worldwide are showing lower interest in expensive battery-powered models than many companies had estimated.

Many premium brands have found that their customers still prefer the sound and feel of traditional engines, or at least the flexibility of plug-in hybrid cars.

Currently, the brand offers hybrid versions of the Continental GT and Flying Spur that use a powerful V8 engine combined with an electric motor.

Nevertheless, Bentley at least wants to release its first electric car in 2027, namely an urban SUV model (previewed by the EXP 15 concept).

The planned SUV will use a battery and motor system similar to the upcoming Porsche Cayenne Electric, with a range of 160 km in seven minutes when using a fast charger.

The car is supposed to use a platform developed by Porsche. Unfortunately, those plans have stopped because Bentley considers it too expensive to build the additional four EVs itself.