Autocar March 18, 2020

THERE’S NO escaping talk about the impact of the coronavirus at the moment. As we’ve detailed in recent weeks, it has already caused the cancellation of the Geneva motor show and factory closures and plummeting sales in China. Now, international launch events for the first drives of several new cars have been postponed – including the Porsche 911 Turbo, Seat Leon and Ferrari SF90 – along with a number of big news events. That has clearly forced some changes upon us and a shuffling of our contents here, but the show at Autocar is very much going on. We’ll still be filling our pages in the coming weeks with all our regulars plus lots of exciting, off-diary features to inspire, engage and interest you, like we have in all 125 years of…

Bentley has begun conceptual work on a new high-riding saloon that it’s preparing to launch as its first fully electric car. The radical model will further the firm’s ambition to establish itself as the most environmentally and sustainably led premium luxury car maker in the world. In their bid to establish global leadership in these areas, Bentley bosses want to follow this year’s launch of the brand’s first hybrid models by revealing its first electric car by 2025. That date is already challenging designers and engineers as they wrestle with delivering a vehicle with sufficient range for customers looking for a grand touring experience along with the performance capability of today’s cars. Heavy investment in battery technology is already helping to reduce the cost and improve the capability of batteries. However, it’s…

THERE’S NO escaping talk about the impact of the coronavirus at the moment. As we’ve detailed in recent weeks, it has already caused the cancellation of the Geneva motor show and factory closures and plummeting sales in China. Now, international launch events for the first drives of several new cars have been postponed – including the Porsche 911 Turbo, Seat Leon and Ferrari SF90 – along with a number of big news events. That has clearly forced some changes upon us and a shuffling of our contents here, but the show at Autocar is very much going on. We’ll still be filling our pages in the coming weeks with all our regulars plus lots of exciting, off-diary features to inspire, engage and interest you, like we have in all 125…

Bentley’s race programmes with the Continental GT3 can’t be sustained if the brand is to achieve its environmental ambitions, CEO Adrian Hallmark has admitted. He said: “We’re committed to the cars we’ve built and have a business built around selling more but, looking forward around 10 years, perhaps sooner, then I can’t see a place for racing as it is today fitting with our goals. “What we are keen to look into, though, is pure-electric endurance racing, particularly if they have a genuine link back to pushing the boundaries of battery energy management. Races of at least 1.5 hours but ideally up to four – even if it was two hours, then charging, then two more – would be something we’d like to be part of. “As I sit here today, I’m not…

Bentley has begun conceptual work on a new high-riding saloon that it’s preparing to launch as its first fully electric car. The radical model will further the firm’s ambition to establish itself as the most environmentally and sustainably led premium luxury car maker in the world. In their bid to establish global leadership in these areas, Bentley bosses want to follow this year’s launch of the brand’s first hybrid models by revealing its first electric car by 2025. That date is already challenging designers and engineers as they wrestle with delivering a vehicle with sufficient range for customers looking for a grand touring experience along with the performance capability of today’s cars. Heavy investment in battery technology is already helping to reduce the cost and improve the capability of batteries.…

Bentley’s race programmes with the Continental GT3 can’t be sustained if the brand is to achieve its environmental ambitions, CEO Adrian Hallmark has admitted. He said: “We’re committed to the cars we’ve built and have a business built around selling more but, looking forward around 10 years, perhaps sooner, then I can’t see a place for racing as it is today fitting with our goals. “What we are keen to look into, though, is pure-electric endurance racing, particularly if they have a genuine link back to pushing the boundaries of battery energy management. Races of at least 1.5 hours but ideally up to four – even if it was two hours, then charging, then two more – would be something we’d like to be part of. “As I sit here…