Entitled 'See Through New Eyes', Bentley's all-new brief video teaser of the future ultra-luxury SUV offers us a glimpse on the styling of the vehicle. According to the manufacturer, "the coming months will see the refinement of a car that has been two years in the making."
From start to finish, the 1-minute long teaser features black and white 3D animations showcasing slightly rounded exterior styling, different and more appealing to the eye than the EXP 9 F Concept presented back in 2012.
Equipped with 5-spoke alloy wheels, gills on the sides, a strong GT-like shoulder line and slanting headlights resembling the ones on the Continental GT when lit, the progress made on the aesthetics front is a far cry from the boxy concept shown at the 2012 Geneva Motor Show.
Concluding by saying the SUV is designed for "seeing light and not lines," Bentley is staying true to what it had promised a little while back - a "sculpted and contemporary design." Truth is Bentley didn't have a choice after receiving horrible feedback on the aforementioned concept's design cues.
Officials also stated that the upcoming ultra-luxurious British SUV already amassed 2,000 pre-orders, even though customers don't know the final price, nor what it will actually look like in the flesh. Heck, Bentley is so secretive with their offspring that not even its name has been revealed.
Even with all the mystery surrounding it, the British manufacturer expects to produce around 3,500 units at its plant in Crewe starting from 2016, while certain voices hint the starting price will be around £140,000 (around $235.000/€172,685 at current exchange rates).
That quite a bit more than fully loaded uber SUVs like the Porsche Cayenne Turbo S or Range Rover 5.0-liter Supercharghed Autobiography. In terms of oomph, not much is known about what will power this big boy. It may be the twin-turbo V8 from the Continental GT, the W12 mill or even an Audi-sourced V8 TDI oil burner.
However, one thing's certain - when the Mulsanne Plug-in Hybrid Concept was revealed back in April, it has been officially confirmed that the all-new SUV will be Bentley's first ever plug-in hybrid model.
Establishing an all-new segment of ultra-luxurious SUVs boasting unrivaled performance and sky-high sticker prices, the upcoming British bruiser will go head to head against the Lamborghini Urus, Maserati Levante and Rolls-Royce's future SUV.
We remind you that the first Bentley SUV test mule has been captured by our carparazzi less than a week ago. Hiding under an Audi Q7 bodyshell, the production version will ride on VW Group's third-generation SUV platform.
After a 1:43 scale model of a Ferrari 250 GTO sparked Mircea's interest for cars when he was a kid, an early internship at Top Gear sealed his career path. He's most interested in muscle cars and American trucks, but he takes a passing interest in quirky kei cars as well. Full profile
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