Jump to content
Create New...
  • William Maley
    William Maley

    Plug-In Hybrids To Become A Key Part of Bentley's Future

      What does Bentley plan for the future in terms of powertrains?

    It is no secret that Bentley is working on a plug-in hybrid variant of the Bentayga SUV due out next year. But Bentley CEO Wolfgang Duerheimer revealed that all of their models would have the option of a plug-in hybrid in the coming years. Speaking at the Automotive News World Conference, Duerheimer said this powertrain provides the best of two worlds - allowing owners to drive their vehicles on electric power only in cities where gas engines might be restricted and traveling for long distances without having to recharge the battery.

    “To cover long distances and to make it from one city to another -- and you travel long distances in the U.S. -- I think the combustion engine will follow us for a long time,” Duerheimer said.

    Following the Bentayga, the next-generation Continental GT will be the next model to get a plug-in hybrid option.

    Source: Automotive News (Subscription Required)

    User Feedback

    Recommended Comments

    Too bad their cars are ugly. :yuck:

    Beauty is skin deep they keep on telling me.

    Ill continue being shallow regarding my views of Bentley and keep on throwing up every time I see one. :puke:

    Edited by oldshurst442
    • Agree 1
    • Disagree 1
    Link to comment
    Share on other sites

    46 minutes ago, oldshurst442 said:

    Too bad their cars are ugly. :yuck:

    Beauty is skin deep they keep on telling me.

    Ill continue being shallow regarding my views of Bentley and keep on throwing up every time I see one. :puke:

    +1 :roflmao: 

    Link to comment
    Share on other sites

    I imagine in 10 years plug in hybrid will be about as common as a turbo engine is today.  Once batteries get cheaper and CAFE is 50+ mpg, half the cars sold will be plug in.

    Link to comment
    Share on other sites

    Turbos are growing but were only 22% of the market last year, and that's after a half century since the first appearance. Hybrids have a LONG way to go to even equal that, never mind reach 50%. Probably a good 40 years to hit 50%, maybe 50.

    Link to comment
    Share on other sites

    Depends on how fast battery technology advances and cost comes down.  If Tesla could sell the base Model S for $45k and the Ludicrous Mode car for $75k, V8 sport sedans would be dead right now.

    2025 might be too soon for hybrid and plug it to hit 50% but there will need to be a lot.   Cars need to add 10 mpg and trucks need to add 5 mpg to their current EPA ratings to hit CAFE in 2025.   And people aren't buying cars anymore, trucks are over 50% of the sales now, so for manufacturers to hit CAFE they need trucks that get good mileage.  How do you get 10 more mpg out of a Malibu or Fusion that are already using sub 2 liter engines?  They gotta all go hybrid.

    Link to comment
    Share on other sites

    But its not enough to just build these hybrids vehicles, you have to sell them. They've been on the U.S. market for many many years, including thru gas prices of well over $4 per, and they've yet to take off in any meaningful way.

    Introducing a hybrid is like introducing a convertible- people generally say 'that's good' right before they say 'but not for me'.

    And Tesla would never lower it's Model S to $45K- marketing/image problems aside, battery costs aren't that huge of a vehicle percentage and they're simply not going to see that huge of a cost drop, never mind what an OEM is wiling to pass on to the consumer. 

    Link to comment
    Share on other sites

    For high end performance it will require Hybrid tech to survive. These companies are not doing this to be cool and not doing it to impress they are doing it because there is no choice. If you want a large engine multi cylinder engine you will have to offset it with a second drive system. 

    The mega performance is all that is saving them at this point. once the cheaper cars catch up one can only imagine what they could do to save the super car. You can only use so much power. 

    I find it very sad as once cars like this were advance but simple. Today they will be to the point once they break and they are 10 years old they will not be worth the price to fix them. We are pretty much there now. 

    Enzo must be turning in his grave. 

    Link to comment
    Share on other sites



    Join the conversation

    You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.
    Note: Your post will require moderator approval before it will be visible.

    Guest
    Add a comment...

    ×   Pasted as rich text.   Paste as plain text instead

      Only 75 emoji are allowed.

    ×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

    ×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

    ×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.


  • google-news-icon.png



  • google-news-icon.png

  • Subscribe to Cheers & Gears

    Cheers and Gears Logo

    Since 2001 we've brought you real content and honest opinions, not AI-generated stuff with no feeling or opinions influenced by the manufacturers.

    Please consider subscribing. Subscriptions can be as little as $1.75 a month, and a paid subscription drops most ads.*
     

    You can view subscription options here.

    *a very limited number of ads contain special coupon deals for our members and will show

  • Similar Content

  • Posts

    • But we don't really need 600 mile EVs.  What we need are EV's that replace the 100 kWh battery with a lighter, cheaper 75 kWh battery and get the same range.  
    • Was out and about in my neighborhood this afternoon and saw not one but two Cadillac ELRs within a couple blocks…a dark red one and a pearl white one.   Also saw two CT6s (dark gray and black) and a CT4 V series in bright blue.  
    • Keep in Mind that Mercedes came to the party late. Kia/Hyundai/Genesis were the first investor with Factorial Energy for Solid state and then a year later Mercedes joined the investors party. Both have prototype assembly lines that come online this spring to actually product production grade battery packs. Right now, both are using hand-built versions and have pretty much the same range. Genesis RV90 EV SUV is supposed to have the first battery packs from the Hyundai Assembly line in them when they go on sale next year. That would put them ahead of Mercedes. Bigger part is when both companies push it through out their whole product portfolio to maximize the performance while minimizing cost. I can imagine the G90 Long wheelbase sedan above having this battery pack and being in the 600 mile plus range. We are in exciting times, and it will be interesting to watch how Mercedes and Kia/Hyundai/Genesis maximize these solid-state battery packs.
    • Warren Buffett was the lead investor in BYD and as a financial requirement made BYD review and apply all of Demming and Drucker's approach to manufacturing like they did for Toyota and most of Japan when the U.S. Auto industry ignored them. BYD is in many ways ahead of many other auto companies world wide in quality as well as technology. Excellent read: Deming versus Drucker. Management Titans Clash Like Rivals in… | by Paul Daoust | SCIO Asset Management Inc. | Medium
    • I remember when the Kia Soul hit the market, together with its jingle about a “little bit of soul.”  I still think the name is clever. Yet, it has taken me this long to actually drive one.  It was because of a situation where the rental agency had run out of compact sedans. The Kia Soul doesn’t look like anything else.  It’s quirky and even an ugly sort of cute.  When it was first released, its cartoon-like front grille “expressed” sadness.  It has been minimally changed during its run and, currently, the front grille looks a little “angry” … and with an underbite.  The side profile is largely unchanged.  Now, the rear door and surface are vertical and its rear taillamp assembly has morphed to wrapping around the edge of that entire surface. In being so vertical, getting into and out of the Soul is easy.  That feeling of verticality extends to the interior of the cabin.  The front of the cabin is spacious enough, the rear of the cabin is sufficiently spacious, and the rear storage space, without the rear seat folded down, is not exactly generous.  To get the full benefit, the rear seat needs to be folded down.  Clearly, a person who buys one has penciled out their needs and has figured that the Kia Soul might work for them.  Some reviewers have said that the dashboard is a throwback to another era.  I believe they were addressing how rounded the different volumes were.  I’d agree that roundedness was very popular in past automotive design, but this dash set-up is unique to the Soul.  The interesting thing is the illumination at night, which seems to change colors – without adjustments I was aware of, the colors were shades of purple and pink.  Having clusters of instruments grouped in these rounded clusters was easy to work with.  The steering wheel in this model was a urethane one, and, anymore, this always gives a vehicle an entry-level feel.   On the main pod, the speedometer is to the left and the tachometer (where one needs to multiply the digital number x 1,000) is on the right.  Fuel and temperature gauges are included and worked in around the edges of the above.  There is an information dialogue box between them where you can see tire pressure and other readouts as you toggle through them. The Soul’s center stack dash pods are very sensible.  This includes both infotainment screen and the climate control panel.  The console is also simply laid out. The Soul’s engine has a subdued rhythmic note, but it’s not hushed when pushed.  This is an economical Kia vehicle.  The engine is a 2.0-liter 4 cylinder unit and it is not turbocharged.  Thus, it makes 147 horses.  Power comes from a CVT, as Hyundai has left the geared automatics behind several years ago, when even Rios (and Accents) had 6 speed automatic transmissions. The Soul is conventional in its mechanics, seeming like a vehicle somewhere between a Kia Rio and a Kia Forte that has been raised up.  That explains its ride and handling, which is probably closer to that of the Forte than to that of the Rio.  This means that, while not premium grade, it is nimble and smooth enough.  Sometimes, it’s the go-kart effect as you slalom around city traffic that “imparts” more agility than would be experienced on two-lane highways or freeways. With its powertrain, it has what it needs for everyday driving and even sprinting away from a light or onto a freeway ramp.  In so doing, the CVT will begin to spool up the rpms, but it doesn’t give the sensation of “sticking” at those higher rpms the way some CVTs did in the mid-2010s.  As for passing up a steep grade or at high speed, this would be more challenging and would need to be “studied.” The seating is upholstered in tougher fabric, which is firm and reasonably comfortable. It is intended to do the job without trying to exhibit uptown workmanship.  If wanting to look over your shoulder to change lanes or pass, the unusual slanted window in the rear sail panel and the thick rear pillar might be slightly intrusive.  The Soul’s greenhouse is not a big glassy one. The Soul is very predictable and easy to live with, though not exactly awe inspiring.  For this sort of packaging, the pricing is in the respectable $22K to $27K MSRP range.  Also, many of the advanced safety electronics are included.  That said, it’s a little brainy, but, while it’s not the brainiest of vehicles, it has more brains than it does looks.  So, if you’re a little quirky, or want to be, choosing this vehicle could be a logical extension of that. The Kia Soul has been on the market for a long time, sales crested a few model years ago, sales have dwindled with each successive year after that, and, at this juncture, it is still available. - - - - - PHOTOS FORTHCOMING  
  • Who's Online (See full list)

    • There are no registered users currently online
  • My Clubs

×
×
  • Create New...

Hey there, we noticed you're using an ad-blocker. We're a small site that is supported by ads or subscriptions. We rely on these to pay for server costs and vehicle reviews.  Please consider whitelisting us in your ad-blocker, or if you really like what you see, you can pick up one of our subscriptions for just $1.75 a month or $15 a year. It may not seem like a lot, but it goes a long way to help support real, honest content, that isn't generated by an AI bot.

See you out there.

Drew
Editor-in-Chief

Write what you are looking for and press enter or click the search icon to begin your search