Bentley to switch to electric vehicle-only range in 2030

Bentley will launch its first electric model in 2025 and will switch to a fully electric vehicle line-up in 2030 as part of a bold new business strategy with the goal of becoming a “global leader in sustainable luxury mobility”. 

The British firm, owned by the Volkswagen Group, has committed to phasing out production of combustion-engined vehicles within a decade as a key part of its new Beyond100 plan.

As part of this plan, Bentley will ramp up its push to electrification, and it has committed to reducing the environmental impact of its Crewe factory by 75% from 2010 levels within five years.

Bentley boss Adrian Hallmark said: “Since 1919, Bentley has defined luxury grand touring. Being at the forefront of progress is part of our DNA; the original Bentley boys were pioneers and leaders. Now, as we look Beyond100, we will continue to lead by reinventing the company and becoming the world’s benchmark luxury car business.”

Speaking about the commitment to switch to a fully electric line-up by 2030, Hallmark added: "This is profound change for the industry, and we want to lead that change. We're not frightened by it, we're inspired by it. The most important thing is not to just make electric cars: we've got to make Bentleys. We've got to take 100 years of Bentley DNA and put it in a modern context."

Bentley range to be fully electric by 2030

Bentley will launch two new plug-in hybrids in 2021, joining the existing Bentayga Hybrid, as part of a previous commitment to offer a PHEV version of every model by 2023. While unconfirmed, one of the models due in 2021 is set to be a Flying Spur PHEV, which has previously been spied testing and will use the powertrain featured in sister firm Porsche's Panamera 4 E-Hybrid.

Bentley has committed to offering only plug-in hybrid or fully electric models by 2026, and it will then phase out its hybrid offerings by 2030 to become a fully electric firm. That date matches the earliest date the UK government has targeted to ban the sale of new combustion-engined cars.

As previously reported, Autocar understands that the firm's first EV in 2025 will be a high-riding saloon that, similar to the Jaguar I-Pace, will sit somewhere between an SUV and a traditional car. Technical details aren't yet forthcoming, but during the Beyond100 presentation event Mattias Rabe, Bentley's engineering boss, said it would be built on a "totally new platform". That is likely to be a version of an electric-only architecture developed by sister firms Porsche and Audi.

The firm previewed its electric future with last year’s EXP 100 GT concept car, which featured four electric motors to offer between 800bhp and 1340bhp, depending on spec, with more than 1100lb ft of torque and a 2.5sec 0-62mph time.