The Bentley Flying Spur will be getting a plug-in hybrid variant in the next 12 months.
The electrified sedan promises more electric range than the Bentayga Hybrid with the performance of the brand’s signature 6.0-litre W12.
Confirmed this week during the Australian media launch of the facelifted Bentley Bentayga V8, company Chairman and CEO, Adrian Hallmark, laid out the brand’s road to an all-electric future come 2030.
That includes the hybridisation of its entire range by 2024, and the brand’s first electric vehicle in late 2025.
Bentley already offers the Bentayga Hybrid, which pairs a 3.0-litre twin-turbo V6 with an electric motor and lithium battery pack, good for 330kW and 700Nm. It’s essentially the same drivetrain as the related Volkswagen Touareg R.
The Bentley Bentayga Hybrid’s 17.3kWh battery pack claims to offer 51 kilometres of electric driving range using the older NEDC standard, and can drive on EV power at speeds up to 135km/h.
Given the Flying Spur’s shared DNA with the Porsche Panamera, as well as Mr Hallmark’s promises of more performance and range, it’s likely the new Flying Spur Hybrid will draw from the same PHEV drivetrain as the Panamera Turbo S E-Hybrid, which uses a 4.0-litre bi-turbo V8 as the base engine.
In the Porsche, this drivetrain has system outputs of 514kW and 870Nm, and with a larger 17.3kWh battery than the pre-facelift model claims a 30 per cent increase in EV range – though Porsche doesn’t actually quote the range.
We do know, however, that the Panamera Turbo S E-Hybrid can dash from 0-100km/h in just 3.2 seconds and hit a top speed of 315km/h.
By comparison, the existing Bentley Flying Spur W12 hits 100km/h in a claimed 3.8 seconds on its way to a top speed of 333km/h.
Further details should be confirmed at the global reveal in the coming months, ahead of an Australian market launch in 2022.
Pictured: Bentley Flying Spur V8
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