300-Mile Electric Bentley Planned… For ~2020
Originally published on EV Obsession.
Editor’s Note: Bentley is a subsidiary of Volkswagen AG, which has announced a few potential long-range EVs in the past few months, and which has announced a strong focus on EVs coming out of dieselgate.
A 4-wheel drive all-electric version of its EXP10 Speed Six concept is currently being worked on by Bentley, according to recent reports.
The new electric luxury car is reportedly expected to possess a single-charge range of around 300 miles and a top speed of about 200 miles per hour. No launch date has been revealed yet, but estimates are for sometime around 2020.
There are now expected to at least two versions of the production model of the EXP10 Speed Six concept — a petrol one sporting a V8, and the aforementioned electric one. The electric version will reportedly possess 400 to 500 horsepower — in addition to the 500 kilometer range (~300 mile range) and the top speed of around 200 miles per hour already mentioned.
“We believe battery technology are reaching a point of where such vehicles are making sense,” stated Bentley CEO Wolfgang Durheimer. “And the performance will be stunning.”
Autocar.co.uk provides more:
The two new cars will bring unprecedented expansion to Crewe: Durheimer has already created 1000 new jobs inside Bentley and, with surrounding suppliers, has embarked on a three-year, £840m spending programme. During yesterday’s announcement he claimed the famous Pym’s Lane works as the first outpost of the government’s much-vaunted “northern powerhouse”.
…During 2015 China has slipped from its position as Bentley’s biggest market, the CEO said, leaving the US market once again as Bentley’s strongest. Second biggest is Europe, buoyed by especially strong demand from the UK, and China is now third. But Durheimer believed flagging Chinese demand is already showing signs of turning, and Bentayga will be further boosted boosted by growing demand from countries such as Russia, Africa and the Middle East, where its all-road ability will be especially valued.
The estimated release date for the all-electric model (2020) is still quite a ways off, so I wouldn’t bank on it as a sure thing. A lot can change in 5 years. Tesla’s updated super-long-range Roadster is expected to be released before 2020 — it’s hard to see how the specs mentioned above can compete with those that the Roadster will be bringing with it.
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Sigh… more vapor from a major manufacturer. If these guys were serious they could produce an EV based exactly on Tesla (free patents) in the maximum time it took to setup an assembly line. I’m putting that timeline at what, 6-12months tops? Certainly not 2020.
Even if you are able tp use all the patents, that still doesn’t remove the necessary engineering required. You’re undererstimating the complexity of automobiles.
More likely you are over defending the automakers =) Are you saying they can’t build cars? Until there is a significant market and better battery and other electronic supply chains I understand the automakers hesitance but I just find it frustrating that many major automakers seem to now understand they need to at least greenwash a little but have no real intention of building EV’s, yet…
I’m not defending them, I’m just as pissed (probably even more than you) that most of them are still so far behind.
But yes, I’m saying you can’t build a good quality car from the ground up in 6-12 months, not even with Teslas patents.
Best thing you can do is buy an EV as soon as it makes sense for you. Doesn’t for me yet, but I can’t wait to see what the mod 3 looks like. Don’t get mad. Get EVen.
USA will be last to let go! China has had electric bullet trains systems using no fossil fuels for over a decade now? Will Science and technology from China turn sunk money, American assets into stranded assets, then deserted assets? remember: computers effect on U.S.A?
You, on the other hand, are stuck in the U.S. Gasoline/Diesel paradigm! Three moving part power trains are already available for electric vehicles. The Electrics that win over the marketplace will not be the ones cluttered with past technology trimmings, but will be super simplified, robot mass produced, extra light weight, and quick charging from 220 volt outlets, and adaptable to Googles self driving concepts? Will they include “Buggy Whips” and “running boards’ as the transitional vehicles from the horse drawn age to the gasoline age did? Somehow I doubt that.
Those cars are still not gonna engineer themselves, no matter how cheap they are produced later.
P.S.: I don’t even live in the US, so I don’t care about your paradigm or whatever that means.
P.P.S: Calling charging from a 220V outlet ‘quick-charging’ is quite a statement.
It makes you wonder where will Tesla be by then. Note that Elon said in Denmark that by 2017 if not 2016 a 1000 km will there. That is about 620 miles.
Do you have a link for that?
If he was talking about a 620 mile/1,000 km Tesla S then he was apparently saying that there would be a doubling of battery capacity. Unless he was talking about a special edition where they fill the frunk with batteries.
A huge jump in battery capacity should push EVs over the top. 200 mile range EVs could be made much lighter, thus needing fewer batteries. Cost decrease.
Bring a $25k 200 mile EV to the market and the war is over.
It was compared to the 728,7 km longest range ever on a single charge in a Model S. So in other words a 37% improvement on range.
He was talking about hypermiling.
edit: someone already mentioned it, oh well.
I’m not sure about that. There is a huge infrastructural hurdle still to conquer. I’ve been to the Nissan dealership, sat in the Nissan Leaf, have the funds to purchase one, I am due to purchase a new car soon, and am passionate about efficiency and climate protection. Yet I cannot purchase one as I do not own a garage and therefore have no means of charging an EV overnight.
Over 50% of all US drivers have an available outlet where they park. We’ll have to install outlets for the other 40+%.
Some utility companies are already financing charge outlets because they realize this is a new market for them. SoCal Edison is helping install 30,000 outlets at apartments and workplace parking lots. PG&E is also working to install in their territory.
It’s definitely a person-to-person issue (commute distance, public charging availability, etc), but FYI, we are doing a long-term review of a Nissan LEAF with no home charging: http://cleantechnica.com/tag/nissan-leaf-long-term-review/
Super Capacitor advances? Remember the huge leverage for power as voltages rise? Higher voltage means smaller capacitors, and smaller motors?
Supercapacitors are starting to seem like fusion.
Just 20 years away. Each new day resets the 20 years….
The Model S hasn’t had much improvement in range over the last three years and the 1000 km is just 37% above current level (728,7 km). That is 6,5% year on year improvement from the delivery start.
So that would be another 20% improvement from 2017 to 2020 if they would keep the same pace.
So expect (at least) a 400 mile EPA Tesla by 2020. The question is if they feel any need to go higher than that.
I think the Roadster already does that.
400 miles EPA range and in a production vehicle. The Roadster is discontinued and had an EPA rating of ~240 miles.
Tesla could easily do an 800 mile vehicle today if it was just some custom made thing. Just put in a load of batteries in a van (or imagine a limousine with a thick Tesla skateboard all the way. 😉
I’m looking for the Roadster 2, carbon fiber shell and better batteries. 400 miles will not be a problem.
It will be available in ~2023, after the release of the Model 3 and Model Y. Hopefully it can get the name Model R.
The upcoming replacement battery for the original Roadster is supposed to give it a 400 mile range.
Pouch cells from LG Chem.
It’s supposed to get about a 35% range increase, so if it were a production vehicle it would get an EPA-rating at around 325-330 miles. Not bad at all, and it would be the longest EPA range if they would put it back into production.
So Elon was saying 1000 km if driven at low speeds under ideal conditions? I assumed he was talking a more realistic metric such as EPA range.
Yes. It was a comment from Musk on the hyper-miling that Bjorn Nyland and a friend of his did in Denmark to break the record. Flat, perfect temperature, doing 25 miles per hour, air-con etc. off. Musk thought the record could be pushed to 1000 km in just a couple of years.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HePkEx06-F8
Two tendencies that are hard to understand: America’s obsession with acceleration and top speeds, and America’s obsession with distance per fill-up?
Price on that Bentley, ICE model, can it compete with Tesla?
No price announced yet, and I doubt it will be able to compete except for a niche market of 0.1% people who want the brand.
While late to be entering the high end EV market, if real there will like be Bently buyers who will stay with them.
300 miles in 2020. Are they joking?
I’m hoping they mean 300miles at 200mph. 🙂 Otherwise it really wouldn’t be special at all.
200 mph? What possible use would the average buyer have for that capability?
This is a Bentley, not a car for the average buyer.
Okay, what possible use would the average Bentley driver have for that capability?
I don’t get where you’re going with that question. Ofcourse that kinda speed makes no sense, not even on the Autobahn. You could also ask, what use does a Ferrari, Lamborghini etc. have. There is no rational answer. Just people with too much money, that don’t know what to do with it.
Given the possibility of that much speed there will be a few that will try it on public roads, endangering everyone else. It would make more sense to have cars limited to 80 mph or less.
Thanks for the laugh!