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Bentley SUV to cost over $220k, fix 'problem' of inexpensive competitors

There's no shock in finding out that a new Bentley is going to be expensive; it kind of goes with the territory. However, company boss Wolfgang Dürheimer is indicating that its upcoming SUV could create a whole new rung of pricing for luxury utility vehicles.
While speaking with Autocar at the Goodwood Festival of Speed, Dürheimer let slip that the company's forthcoming SUV would have a price of 130,000 pounds or more ($220,000 at current US exchange rates). Thankfully, the Bentley boss further clarified the reason for such a high cost of entry. He said that the elite players in the field like the Porsche Cayenne or Land Rover Range Rover have prices that hit the European equivalent of about $220,000 for top-trim, fully-optioned models. "We aim to solve this problem," said Dürheimer to Autocar. While it's exceedingly rare for converted foreign MSRPs to equal the actual expense in the US, it looks to be at the very top end of the class.
That is a stratospheric figure, but the Bentley SUV already has some big rumors to live up to. The company is reportedly aiming for a 200-mile-per-hour top speed and may possibly offer a plug-in hybrid powertrain, as well. It's being pretty flagrant in evaluating the new vehicle too by plastering a promotional URL on its test mules (see above). They show the model with the brand's trademark circular headlights up front, and interior photos indicate a digital instrument panel. If Dürheimer is serious about that price, the company better pack the car with every bell and whistle it can find to justify it.

Bentley forging ahead with SUV development

Bentley has a whole mess of new models in the pipeline, including a completely new coupe, two-door and high-performance versions of the Mulsanne and an even more hard-core version of the Continental GT3-R. But the most vital product under development at Crewe is its upcoming new SUV, and that's what our spy photographers have caught undergoing testing.
This prototype appears to be the same one we spotted a couple of months ago, although this time the NewBentley.com stickers appear to have been taped over (presumably to call less attention to itself) and the whole thing is riding lower to the ground to better test its brakes and cooling systems.
While the form clearly shares much with the EXP 9 F concept that previewed its development at the 2012 Geneva Motor Show, the design has clearly been worked over with a front end and tailgate that are easier on the eyes and more in keeping with the company's styling language.

Baby Bentley studied for 2020, but it might not be cheaper

Bentley may step down a segment with a new, smaller luxury car that it hopes to have ready by 2019. The British luxury marque's fifth model line, assuming that its SUV ever makes it to market, though, is still in the earliest planning stages.
Kevin Rose, Bentley's head of sales and marketing, spoke with Autocar at the Geneva Motor Show about the proposed new vehicle. "At the moment, our line of thinking is for a smaller car. But smaller doesn't necessarily mean cheaper," he said. The brand believes the price floor of its models should be 100,000 pounds ($167,240).
The smaller Flying B isn't the only project being worked on. Rose hinted that it is considering an even more expensive model above the Mulsanne priced at around 300,000 pounds ($501,735) that would compete with the Rolls-Royce Phantom. "The twin pillars of the Bentley brand are performance and luxuriousness. Any car that offers something unique, with both of those bases well covered, is on the table," he said.