Bentley has been pushing ahead with the development of its first Sports Utility Vehicle of which spy pictures have been released across the internet, which disguise the model as an Audi Q7.
The spy pictures show what looks like an Audi Q7 at first glance, though when the registration number plate is run through vehicle look up on the DVLA website it is actually registered officially as Black Bentley unknown model.
Although this does not essentially appear to give much away about the model at first, it confirms that the car which has been spied and with pictures released across the internet is actually an early Bentley test mule for the company’s first ever SUV.
What we know about the Bentley SUV so far
The model is concealed by Audi Q7 bodywork, of which it will be sharing a platform, the clearest clue visibly on the pictures of the Bentley underpinnings is the addition of air vents which have been enlarged on either side of the Audi grille. This suggests that there is a focus at this stage of development on the models powertrain and it’s associated technology.
Given that the Sports Utility Vehicle is expected to be launched in 2016, with the Crewe built W12 6.0 litre engine from the manufacturer, it is likely that the twin turbocharged unit was being re-assessed in the set up, though there is a diesel variant also being considered along with a plug in hybrid engine that has allegedly been confirmed soon to follow in time for 2017.
Launch and Pricing structure of the Bentley SUV
Although a little bit of digging has shown that the model that has been spotted across the internet is a Bentley, the mysterious labelling as meant that we are still not aware of what the new luxury 4×4 vehicle will be called, or exactly how much it is going to cost either. Though this had not put prospective customers off whatsoever, as there have been over 2,000 pre-orders put in place, with only a teaser that has shown what the Bentley SUV may look like.
It will probably be next year before we get an official debut for the Bentley SUV, with the new model set to be arriving in showrooms in 2016 for a likely price of 140,000 and upwards, which could rise to around 200,000 for top of the range models.
