Blog

BRITISH ultra-luxury carmaker Bentley launched a hybrid electric version of its most powerful road car – the Continental GT Speed – in Singapore on Wednesday (Nov 20).

The grand touring coupe has 782 horsepower and a top speed of 335 km per hour. It is Bentley’s second plug-in hybrid electric vehicle (PHEV) to hit the Singapore market, after the Flying Spur PHEV was introduced in 2022.

PHEVs can be directly charged by an external source and move on electric power alone. But unlike fully electric vehicles, PHEVs also have an internal combustion engine powered by petrol or diesel.

Bentley Singapore debuted the Continental GT Speed at W Residences Singapore’s Marina View Sales Gallery.

Two versions are available: a coupe at S$1,538,000 and a convertible at S$1,688,000. Both prices do not include a Certificate of Entitlement, nor customisation or add-on options.

Despite the high horsepower, the Continental GT Speed also has the longest electric-only range of any Bentley to date, at 81 km.

The car has a four-litre V8 petrol engine, a 190 horsepower electric motor and a 25.9 kilowatt-hour battery that takes under three hours to charge.

The hybrid is also much cleaner, based on Land Transport Authority data. It emits carbon dioxide at 141 g/km, compared to 319 g/km for the previous model, which had a six-litre W12 petrol engine.

Under the Vehicular Emissions Scheme, it is classified under the neutral band B, which means it receives neither a rebate or a surcharge. Luxury or high-performance cars typically receive surcharges under the scheme, which encourages the adoption of greener vehicles.

Bentley has sold two PHEVs a year since the first model appeared here in 2022.

The Continental GT Speed is Bentley’s third PHEV model globally, with the company intending to introduce more of such models until 2035.

Bentley is slated to launch its first fully electric vehicle in 2026. In November, Bentley revised its electrification strategy, saying it would extend the sales of fossil fuel cars – including PHEVs – for another five years, until 2035. Originally, it aimed to sell only electric vehicles by 2030.

A Bentley Singapore representative said the updated strategy follows better-than-expected customer acceptance of PHEV in many markets, and takes into account the fact that customers and governments are not embracing electric vehicles with the urgency expected when Bentley first announced its electrification strategy in 2020.

Other carmakers that have delayed plans to sell electric models only include Ford, Toyota, Porsche and Volvo.