Bentley has caused surprise by announcing its new range of three replacement cars will be petrol only. In a blow to environmental campaigners and the government which has pledged to ban sales of fossil fuel cars by 2030 the luxury manuacturer based in Crewe, Cheshire said demand had fallen.
It told Autocar it is preparing pure-petrol successors to the Bentayga, Continental GT and Flying Spur in a dramatic reversal of its EV-only strategy, and it follows a significant U-turn at Porsche late last week.
Under its Beyond100 strategy, the British luxury car manufacturer had planned to eliminate petrol engines entirely by 2035.
However, the plan is now facing major revisions as its Volkswagen Group sister company reinforces renewed commitments to internal combustion engine development.
Porsche announced on Friday that it will invest €3.1 billion to prolong the lifespan of its petrol models.
This particularly encompasses new « top » variants of the next-generation 718 Boxster and Cayman and abandoning plans to sell the proposed ‘K1’ flagship as an EV.
Sister Volkswagen Group company Audi scrapped its electric-only plan by 2033 last year.
Bentley CEO Frank-Steffen Walliser informed Autocar that since the three marques share platforms, drivetrains and other crucial components, decisions and investments in Stuttgart and Ingolstadt have directly impacted operations in Crewe.
He confirmed that Bentley still intends to introduce a new plug-in hybrid or electric model annually from 2026, commencing with its inaugural EV, an « urban SUV ».
However, with Porsche and Audi continuing to pour substantial investment into ICE technology for their top-sellers, he indicated Bentley now has flexibility to weight its drivetrain portfolio more heavily towards conventional petrol power well into the next decade than initially envisaged.
Consequently, pure-petrol successors to the Bentayga, Continental GT and Flying Spur are expected to remain part of theline-up, which was initially expected to be offered only with PHEV or EV powertrains, has been adjusted to meet demand from key markets such as the Middle East and North America.
Mr Walliser said: « There is a dip in demand for luxury electric vehicles, and customer demand is not yet strong enough to support an all-electric strategy. The luxury market is a lot different today than when we announced Beyond100. »
Electrification is still our goal, but we need to take our customers with us. « .
Despite this shift in strategy, Bentley’s Crewe facility continues to receive investment, with construction underway on a new electric model assembly line, paint shop and design centre.
Bentley had previously delayed its target for becoming an all-electic brand from 2030 to 2035, citing a slowdown in the luxury EV market.
This decision is likely to be reinforced by the Volkswagen Group’s new direction and multi-billion-euro investments in ICE models.
The news came as a new survey suggested fewer than a third (31%) of people would be willing to walk more than 10 minutes home after using a public electric vehicle (EV) charger.
But researchers also found the average walking time to a public charger for UK households is 11 minutes and 56 seconds.
Many EV drivers without off-road parking at home rely on using public chargers, often overnight.
There are large variations in the average walking time from public chargers across regions, ranging from 15 minutes and 18 seconds in the East of England to three minutes and eight seconds in London.
Gaps in local charging infrastructure risk discouraging many drivers from making the transition to electric motoring, according to the analysis by Motability Operations, which provides cars to disabled people.
The Government has pledged to ban the sale of new petrol and diesel cars and vans from 2030.
Some 51% of EV drivers surveyed believe there are enough public chargers across the UK but this falls to 24% among EV drivers who are Motability customers.
This highlights a “clear disconnect” between the infrastructure roll-out and the “real-world needs” of drivers with additional mobility requirements, according to Motability Operations.
Andrew Miller, the company’s chief executive, said: “Too many drivers don’t trust that they’ll be able to charge easily, locally or reliably.
“If we’re serious about meeting the 2030 ban on petrol and diesel sales, chargepoints need to be where people live, easy to use, and designed with everyone in mind.
“Until this happens, we risk leaving thousands of drivers behind.”
John Lewis, chief executive of charging provider char.gy, said: “This research underlines why public charging must match real-world needs.
“Around 40% of UK drivers don’t have a driveway and rely on public chargers, yet average walking times to reach them are nearly 12 minutes.
“This is simply too long – especially for those with additional mobility requirements.”
The surveys of 2,243 members of the public and 1,495 Motability customers were conducted by research company Ipsos in August.
The average walking time to public chargers was calculated by consultancy Field Dynamics in partnership with charger locator service Zapmap.
