Bentley EV: Everything we know so far about the 2026 luxury electric car
Here’s what we know so far about the first all-electric Bentley, including what it looks like
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Your support makes all the difference.Like almost all car manufacturers, Bentley has a plan to shift from petrol power to electricity over the coming years.
While this will signal the end of characterful combustion engines, it gives Bentley a chance to lean further into luxury thanks to the inherently quiet, smooth and powerful driving experience delivered by electric motors.
Bentley also needn't worry too much about the huge weight of battery packs, since its cars have never been ones to boast about their dainty proportions. Indeed, Ettore Bugatti is said to have described Bentley’s pre-war efforts as building “fast trucks”.
Fast-forward a century, and while Bentley isn’t in the business of building lightweight sports cars, it has become immensely successful at making luxury vehicles. Soon it’ll reveal its first EV – a move that will see it compete with the more expensive Rolls-Royce Spectre, the upcoming Range Rover Electric, and the new electric Jaguar.
Here’s all we know so far about Bentley’s plans for going electric. This article will be updated as more information comes to light.
Bentley EV release date
Back in 2019, Bentley revealed the EXP 100 GT, pictured above. This was a concept car, a 100th birthday present to itself, and a look at what a future, all-electric Bentley could look like.
Since then, the brand has launched plug-in hybrid versions of its Bentayga SUV, Flying Spur saloon and, most recently, its best-selling Continental GT. Then, in 2026, Bentley will reveal its first all-electric car.
The company said in November 2024 how the car will “create a new segment” when it arrives in 2026, and take the form of what Bentley describes as “the world’s first true luxury urban SUV.”
We would argue that Bentley’s own Bentayga, which has been around since 2015, is already a luxurious SUV intended primarily for urban use, but the company’s language suggests its first EV will take a step beyond that and become its new flagship vehicle.
Bentley says the EV will be the first of 10 new vehicles to arrive annually over the next decade, with the family compromising both fully-electric and plug-in hybrid powertrains. From 2035 the company intends to be building only fully-electric cars – a goal it had originally hoped to achieve by 2030, but pushed back in late-2024.
Bentley EV price
Should they stick to their current schedules, both Bentley and Jaguar are set to release an all-new luxury electric car in 2026.
However it looks like the Jaguar will carry the lower price, as managing director Rawdon Glover told The Independent in late-2024: “The range will come in a little bit below £100,000, but the weighted average will probably be above £100,000 in most markets.”
Given the language used by Bentley to describe its first EV – and how today’s Bentayga hybrid starts at £169,000 – we expect the new “luxury urban SUV” will cost substantially more than the Jaguar. Meanwhile, an upcoming electric Range Rover (due out in 2025) is expected to start from around £125,000, and Rolls-Royce’s electric Spectre starts well above all of its rivals, at £330,000.
Bentley EV specification
This is a bit of an unknown for now. Bentley hasn’t shed any light on what electric drivetrain its new car will use, but has published a sketch, outlining the shape of the car and included at the top of this article. With a long bonnet, high but gently sloping roofline and broad rear wheel arches, the profile is similar to that of the Bentayga.
The car appears to have a slightly shorter cabin than Bentley’s SUV, however, suggesting this might be a two-door EV like the Spectre, but with the dimensions of a large SUV.
Since Bentley is a part of the Volkswagen Group, the car is expected to share some of its major components with an electric platform called PPE. Standing for Premium Platform Electric, PPE is currently used by Audi and Porsche, who are also part of the VW Group. It underpins the new Porsche Macan, as well as the Audi A6 e-tron and Q6 e-tron.
Pictured above in its Porsche guise, the platform uses an 800-volt electrical system that facilitates a maximum charging rate of 270 kW. It allows for all-wheel-drive from two electric motors and a 100 kWh battery pack.
Given the high price, and how the car isn’t due to arrive for another year, we imagine a real-world range of at least 300 to 350 miles should be possible for the first all-electric Bentley.
Bentley EV latest news and rumours
Bentley last spoke about its first EV in November 2024. That’s when we learned that the car will arrive in 2026, and saw the simple sketch of its side profile.
Nothing new has been seen since, but it shouldn’t be long until we start to spot camouflaged development vehicles out on the public road. With the car launching in 2026, Bentley will also be conducting hot- and cold-weather testing through 2025, with development vehicles likely heading to hotter climes this summer and to the Arctic for the next winter season.
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