Bentley’s Next-Gen Bentayga Won’t Be an EV, After All
A new version of the best-selling Bentley is on its way.
The second iteration of the Bentayga will launch in 2028, reports Autocar. The SUV won’t be an EV as originally expected and will instead be a plug-in hybrid.
The Bentayga has been a massive success for Bentley ever since its debut in 2015. The luxuryLuxuryA lifestyle defined by exceptional quality, craftsmanship, exclusivity, and sophistication, encompassing the finest products, services, and experiences that represent the highest standards of refinement and excellence.Go to Luxury Glossary SUV, which was refreshed in 2020, has consistently been the British marque’s best-selling model and accounted for nearly half of its sales last year. Because of this, there’s plenty of interest in how the vehicle will change in its next generation.
Fortunately, we won’t have to wait long to find out. The next version of the SUV will arrive in 2028, according to the British automotive magazine. This, in itself, is not that surprising; what is, though, is that it will be the first of the company’s next-generation of plug-in hybrids.
There had been an expectation that the next Bentayga would be all-electric. This was because it was set to be built on corporate sibling Porsche’s advance Sport version of parent company Volkswagen Group’s SSP platform. This architecture has since been delayed by Porsche because of lower-than-expected demand, so the new Bentayga will now be built on the PPC platform.
This setup, which is used by the current Porsche Cayenne and upcoming Audi Q9, which can accommodate a range of combustion engines and a plug-in hybrid system. Because of this, Bentley CEO Frank-Steffen Walliser says his company will not have to “force people to change from a combustion engine or plug-in hybrid car to an electric car” before they are ready. The executive views plug-in hybrid technology as the best way to prepare the automaker for 2035, when legislation will go into effect mandating that all cars sold in the U.K. and 90 percent sold in the E.U. need to be fully electric.
Little is known about the next Bentayga beyond this, but Autocar suggests that its electrified powertrain will feature a 3.0-liter V-6, just like today’s plug-in hybrid variant. Output is also expected to be similar to the current 456 hp and 516 ft lbs of torque.
Representatives for Bentley did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The all-electric Bentayga isn’t the only EV that has been effected by changes at Volkswagen Group. Bentley no longer plans to release five pure battery-powered models by 2030, though the company’s first, currently known only as the Luxury Urban EV, is still expected to make its debut later this year.
This article originally appeared in Robb Report US.