You know what they say about old dogs learning new tricks? Well, they clearly have yet to hear of Bentley Motors. The British luxury car maker, known for its powerful and meticulously crafted vehicles, is waving goodbye to its iconic 12-cylinder W12 engine after almost two decades and literally charging full speed ahead into the electric future.
Bentley’s parent company Volkswagen, announced last year that the brand is aiming to go fully electric within the next ten years as part of their Beyond100 sustainability strategy. Bentley is investing a whopping £2.5 billion (that’s $3.4 billion) into flipping their entire model range to battery electric vehicles only.
This will help with Bentleys’ big plans to deliver a new electric model every year starting from 2025 as part of their Five in Five plan. Talk about putting the pedal to the metal! And there is no room for sentimentality as Bentley is bidding adieu to their 12-cylinder W12 petrol engine that’s been propelling their cars forward since 2003.
According to Bentley’s Chairman and CEO Adrian Hallmark, this is all part of the brand’s journey towards sustainable luxury mobility. In his own words: “When we first launched the W12 back in 2003, we knew we had a mighty engine that would propel both our cars and the brand forwards at speed. 20 years and more than 100,000 W12s later, the time has come to retire this now-iconic powertrain as we take strides towards electrification.”
Bentley is the largest producer of 12-cylinder petrol engines, but part of their plan is to become an end-to-end carbon-neutral company by 2030, so Bentley is reinventing every aspect of their business, including building a “dream factory” in Crewe to transform their operations. With their eye firmly fixed on the future, who knows what other surprises they have up their sleeve? One thing’s for sure, we can’t wait to see what’s next.
