The above photo is not the actual Bentley SUV but a rendering from the Xenatec Group
At the recent Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance event in Monterey, California, Bentley boss Wolfgang Duerheimer told reporters that the British luxury carmaker is indeed looking to add an SUV model to its range, confirming earlier reports.
Duerheimer went into more details revealing that the crossover model would utilize the platform architecture as well as other hardware from the Porsche Cayenne and Audi Q7 models.
“This car will not be made from scratch," he said. "But you can use existing components with different settings and calibrations.
The Bentley CEO added that the new SUV, which could debut as early as 2014, won’t necessarily be powered by a V12 engine like other Bentley models noting that “not everyone needs to have a V12.”
Duerheimer, who during his stint at Porsche signed off the Cayenne, insists that an SUV can stay true to Bentley’s heritage.
“The question is the overall configuration. While certain components may come from somewhere else, the systems architecture will be Bentley. The command position, the packaging, design and suspension of the car will be typically Bentley.”
Duerheimer also revealed that the British brand is considering the development of a new four-seat sports car. However, he was much less forthcoming on the details, commenting only that “it will be contemporary, fast and futuristic.”
While it's safe to say that all future Bentley models will share a certain number of components with other VW Group models, Duerheimer didn’t want to be drawn into a conversation about whether the four-seat sports car would be based on Porsche or Audi underpinnings, nor comment on its projected launch time and pricing.
Story source: Autoweek
