Bentley started the countdown to the 2016 launch of its first ever SUV with the release of a teaser image, but we’ve taken things a step further with our illustration of how we think the new car will shape up.
The SUV is expected to launch with Bentley’s W12 engine, but a plug-in hybrid version has been confirmed and a diesel engine is also likely to figure. Pricing should start at close to £140,000 with some versions costing upwards of £200,000.
The SUV will be built at Bentley’s Crewe plant, where Auto Express caught up with Bentley’s design director Luc Donckerwolke for an exclusive chat.
Donckerwolke has been working at Crewe for the past 18 months, following a stint heading up Seat’s design team and also working at Lamborghini, Audi and Skoda. And the SUV is the first Donckerwolke-penned Bentley we’ll see.
“When we start talking about teaser images, I can start to relax,” he told us. “I know that the design project is almost done.”
“There’s still some details around the brightwork and the lights that are still running, but no more conceptual discussions. Instead we’re now looking at production, checking gap lines, radii and checking parts with suppliers.”
Although this is Donckerwolke’s first production SUV, he’s no stranger to the sector. “I was born in Peru and grew up in Africa so my life was surrounded by SUVs: Jeeps, Land Rovers, Toyotas. I designed an SUV for Lamborghini and one for SEAT, but those designs tended to end up in the cellars!”
So what can we expect from Bentley’s first SUV? “There’ll be an interesting mix of functionality with aesthetics,” he said, “You’ll see new ways of getting the DNA of Bentley across.”
“We’re going to make Bentleys athletic, more muscular. A Bentley should not be a firework of emotion, it should be like a strong dancer: working hard, performing faultlessly, but not sweating. Our cars will have the right amount of muscle and elegance.”
“There should be no ornaments without function, lines will be well controlled around the wheels, shoulders will support the cabin and the right amount of metal will surround the lights. The latest metal-forming technology enables us to get more three-dimensionality out of metal.”
“Enzo Ferrari once said that he’d make one less car than there’s demand for. For me, perfect design has to have one element less than it needs. That doesn’t mean that the car has to look Spartan or minimalistic, but it has to be self-confident, not arrogant, show potential not be aggressive.”
When Bentley showed the EXP 9 F SUV concept at Geneva in 2012, its exterior proved controversial – although Donckerwolke is adamant that the car served its purpose in getting a reaction – but its interior was much more popular.
However, tech has moved on since then and Donckerwolke has taken a new approach to the interior. “Luxury is to have everything available, but concealed,” he says, “We call it a butler concept – you don’t know of his presence but he telepathically knows what you need and when.”
“You’ll see a lot of that on the interior – it’s a Bentley interior re-orchestrated, a mixture of innovation and emotion.”
“We can’t put a 12-inch iPad-style screen on the centre console of a Bentley – we’re not going in to the world of the Mercedes S-Class or Tesla. It’s where the Butler concept comes in - the tech is there, but with fewer, high quality touchpoints.”
“These days you can have everything you want without a screen, especially with voice control like Siri. We cannot create an accident – we have to offer innovation, but in a subtle way.”
In spite of all the talk of tech, Donckerwolke is clear that true Bentley values must remain and hints that traditional Bentley design features like the knurled gearlever, organ stops to control airflow and bulls-eye vents will all be in the SUV: “There’s always a place for craftsmanship in a Bentley. In fact my colleagues in the workshops are innovating all the time, with new ideas that we work on together.”
That Bentley tradition may well continue with the name of the SUV. We’re some way away from that being announced, but the smart money is reviving a name from Bentley’s past.
