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Rolls-Royce’s Next Ultra-Luxury SUV Will Be Electric

Rolls-Royce has never been in a hurry. But when it finally moves, it tends to glide rather than sprint—and its next glide will be fully electric.

Spotted cold-weather testing in Arjeplog, Sweden, Rolls-Royce’s second EV is shaping up to be a battery-powered counterpart to the Cullinan. It’s big, square, and unmistakably aristocratic, and it marks the next step in the company’s carefully choreographed transition away from internal combustion. Think of it as the Spectre’s taller, more imposing sibling—one built not to corner Nürburgring apexes but to dominate ski-resort parking lots in total, whisper-quiet authority.

This new SUV rides on Rolls-Royce’s Architecture of Luxury platform, the same aluminum spaceframe that underpins everything from the Phantom to the Ghost and, now, the Spectre. That’s important, because it means this isn’t some rushed EV conversion—it’s a ground-up Rolls, designed to preserve the brand’s signature ride isolation, vault-like solidity, and cathedral-level cabin quiet. The Spectre already showed that this platform works brilliantly in an electric context, delivering up to 650 horsepower from a dual-motor setup and a 102-kWh battery good for 329 miles of range. The SUV is expected to follow a similar template, though Rolls-Royce being Rolls-Royce, “similar” doesn’t mean identical.

What makes things especially interesting is the BMW connection. Rolls-Royce sits inside the BMW Group, and BMW’s next-generation Neue Klasse EV tech—new motors, new batteries, higher efficiency—debuting soon in vehicles like the upcoming iX3 could, in theory, filter into this Rolls-Royce SUV. That would give the brand a leap forward in charging speeds, range, and energy density. The catch? BMW’s Neue Klasse hardware was never designed with Rolls-Royce’s Architecture of Luxury in mind, so making the two talk to each other might require more engineering gymnastics than even a billion-dollar automaker likes to admit.

Still, timing suggests Rolls-Royce isn’t far from pulling the silk sheet off this thing. The Spectre was spotted testing in late 2021, unveiled in October 2022, and delivered to customers a year later. The new SUV appears to be following the same playbook, meaning a reveal sometime in the coming months and sales roughly a year after that. In other words, if you’ve been quietly waiting for a Cullinan that runs on electrons instead of premium unleaded, your patience is about to be rewarded.

The competitive stakes are rising, too. Bentley is preparing its own first EV—an “urban SUV”—set to debut in late 2026. Rolls-Royce beating its longtime rival to market with a fully electric luxury SUV would be a symbolic power move, even in a segment where symbolism matters almost as much as horsepower.

For now, Rolls-Royce is staying tight-lipped, officially “unable to comment on future product plans.” But those camouflaged test mules sliding through the Swedish snow tell us everything we need to know: the age of silent, battery-powered opulence isn’t coming—it’s already here, and Rolls-Royce intends to own it.

Source: Autocar

NEW CARS

Bentley’s Wild Bentayga X Concept Is Proof That Even Ultra-Luxury Wants to Get Dirty

Bentley has spent more than a century perfecting the art of wafting, not wading. Yet here we are: the Bentayga X Concept, a jacked-up, light-bar-wearing, off-road-ready monster that looks like it just escaped from a Dakar bivouac after stealing a private jet on the way out. And somehow, it makes perfect sense.

Officially, Bentley calls the X Concept a “stimulator”—a rolling focus group meant to gauge customer interest in a more hardcore Bentayga. Unofficially, it’s Bentley kicking down the door of the luxury-off-road trend and shouting, “We’re here too.”

Underneath the mud-splattered attitude is the familiar Bentayga Speed, meaning the twin-turbo 4.0-liter V-8 still sends 641 horsepower to all four wheels. That’s more than enough muscle to shove this 2.5-ton SUV through sand, snow, or whatever expensive terrain Bentley owners feel like conquering next.

But this isn’t just a Bentayga with knobby tires. The X Concept rides 55 mm higher and is 40 mm wider, with a track stretched by a massive 120 mm. Ground clearance climbs to nearly 310 mm, and Bentley says it can wade through 550 mm of water—roughly bathtub depth for a vehicle that still has quilted leather seats inside.

The suspension hardware is serious too. The Bentayga’s air suspension and active anti-roll bars remain, meaning it should still cruise with Bentley smoothness on the highway while offering genuine articulation off the pavement. The 22-inch Brixton wheels are wrapped in tall all-terrain rubber, finally giving a Bentayga tires that look like they belong on a trail instead of a red carpet.

Then there’s the vibe. The X Concept wears a roof rack holding four spotlights and—because this is Bentley—an electric go-kart. It’s ridiculous, unnecessary, and completely on-brand. If you’re going to overland in a Bentley, you might as well bring toys.

Bentley plans to show off the X Concept at the FAT Ice Race in Salzburg, where it will be driven by Chris Harris, former Autocar journalist and now one of the world’s most famous automotive broadcasters. Even better, it will be towing Norwegian Olympic skier Hedvig Wessel, because nothing says “brand image” like pulling a world-class athlete across an icy track with a 641-horsepower luxury SUV.

This Bentley isn’t an outlier—it’s part of a growing movement. The first-generation Porsche Cayenne has become a cult hero among off-road modifiers, and manufacturers themselves are joining in. Porsche built the 911 Dakar, Lamborghini unleashed the Huracán Sterrato, and Morgan turned its Plus Four into a rally-ready CX-T. High-end performance cars are no longer afraid of dirt, gravel, or snow.

Bentley’s X Concept fits squarely into that trend, but with its own ultra-luxury twist. Instead of stripping things out for ruggedness, Bentley adds capability without removing the indulgence. It’s not about survival—it’s about conquering the wilderness while still arriving in heated, diamond-stitched comfort.

Whether or not Bentley green-lights a production version, the message is clear: the era of soft-road luxury SUVs is over. The new goal is real off-road credibility, even at six-figure price tags.

And if Bentley does build it? The Bentayga X might become the ultimate status symbol—not for the valet line, but for the trailhead.

Source: Autocar