Company boss says decision due on British firm's future hybrid plans within the next six months.
02 May 2018 | 2773 Views | By Rachel Burgess, Autocar UK
The new Bentley Flying Spur, due to be revealed by the end of 2018, could be the next model in the car maker’s lineup to get a hybrid variant, according to CEO Adrian Hallmark.
The firm's first electrified production model, the Bentayga Hybrid, was revealed at this year’s Geneva motor show. While ...
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The new Bentley Flying Spur, due to be revealed by the end of 2018, could be the next model in the car maker’s lineup to get a hybrid variant, according to CEO Adrian Hallmark.
The firm's first electrified production model, the Bentayga Hybrid, was revealed at this year’s Geneva motor show. While the new Continental GT might seem a natural choice to be the next fitted with a hybrid, Hallmark said it might be the Flying Spur that gets an electrified powertrain first, because it is the firm's second-biggest volume car after the Bentayga.
"There are two aspects that drive electrification. One is compliance with regional standards and the other is being competitive. In terms of compliance in certain markets, that will lead us down one direction," said Hallmark.
"Obviously Bentayga is our highest volume car so that’s the first one we have to hybridise. The next volume car is probably going to be the saloon car, so if you wanted a second car just for compliance, then that would normally be the next selection."
When asked whether that meant the next hybrid would be the Flying Spur saloon, Hallmark said: “Possibly. We’ll make that decision in next six months.”
Talking more broadly about the new Flying Spur, Hallmark said there would be more differentiation with its sibling car, the Continental GT, than in the outgoing models, confirming Autocar's earlier scoop on the model.
“If we look at the outgoing Continental and the current Flying Spur, it was absolutely unashamedly the strategy to have as much carry-over as possible. The whole dashboard, the front wing, everything.
“The facelift then changed it and the new Flying Spur is as pure to its concept as can be and will be more differentiated [from the new Continental GT] than the outgoing cars are between each other.”
He added that he believes Bentley was in an “incredible position” with the Flying Spur, adding: “The car in terms of luxury and sports combination does what the best luxury saloons can do but it also does almost what a Continental GT can do.
“The next model moves forward progressively in the same dimensions as the GT does - craftsmanship, technology and design.”