Bentley has announced that its first electric vehicle will be an SUV and that it will be introduced in the year 2025.
It was in November last year when the luxury automaker unveiled its Beyond100 strategy under which it confirmed that it will switch its entire model range to battery electric vehicles by 2030.
CEO of Bentley Motors, Adrian Hallmark, has hinted recently that the British brand will make use of Artemis, a new cutting-edge Audi-developed luxury car platform for its fully electric models.
However, unlike before, where Bentley had to capitalise on existing Volkswagen Group platforms, the luxury carmaker has been involved in the development process of Artemis right from the beginning.
Hallmark claims Bentley has been helping define the new platform for it is going to be a beneficiary of it. He added that the brand is going to have closer synergies with Audi, while still having a strong relationship with Porsche.
Speaking about the very first all-electric model, the Bentley electric SUV, the firm’s CEO claimed, “If you’re not in SUVs, you’re nowhere.” He also noted that 2025 would be right time for the brand to introduce the vehicle.
By then Bentley hopes battery technology would have evolved rapidly to allow it to make an EV that is lighter and more aerodynamic.
Although an electric vehicle will suit Bentley’s attributes, they are quiet and have high torque output, designing the first Bentley electric SUV is not going to be an easy task for the firm.
Unlike a traditional ICE car, an EV will have to be designed around the battery pack, the size of which will determine the wheelbase and width of the car. Expect Bentley designers to make use of the design cues already seen on the EXP 100 GT concept for the brand’s EVs.
Before the Bentley electric SUV arrives, the carmaker plans to introduce 2 plug-in hybrid models (PHEV variants of the Flying Spur and possibly the Continental GT) this year and by, 2023, all of its cars will have a hybrid variant.
Source – CarMagazine.co.uk