For the economy-minded millionaire, Bentley planning diesel model – hopefully a V12 SUV

By Nick Jaynes January 31, 2014

Bentley SUV concept — Image used with permission by copyright holder

Bentley is the most popular ultra-luxury brand in the world, selling more cars over $100,000 than any other automaker – by a 50-percent margin. Soon, Bentley could also be most fuel-efficient, too, as it has a diesel-powered model in the works.

In an interview with Autocar, Bentley owner Volkswagen AG head Martin Winterkorn said, “Diesel for Bentley is decided. It won’t be a V10. But the V10 is not dead within the VW Group; there will be a successor.”

Since the Bentley diesel will not be the VW V10 powerplant, this means only one thing (well, OK, two). The Bentley diesel could be a V12 diesel engine. Yes, it could also be a V8. Don’t ruin my dreams, all right?

What model might get the diesel first? My gut is telling me it’ll be the newly confirmed SUV. And that would make sense, too.

Diesel is widely seen as a bit more utilitarian, from America’s full-size diesel pickup trucks to Europe’s diesel-burning compact cars. So offering a diesel-firing V12 in a ultra-luxury 4×4 would make sense.

Whichever Bentley gets it, though, will benefit greatly from the torque-y nature of diesel engines. The aforementioned 5.0-liter VW V10 diesel, that once powered the Touareg TDI, produced 553 pound-feet of torque. If implemented in one swift move of the throttle pedal is enough to relocate the Rocky Mountains.

Do you think Bentley’s forthcoming foray into a diesel powerplant is a bad idea? Tell us in the comments.

Former Digital Trends Contributor

Nick Jaynes is the Automotive Editor for Digital Trends. He developed a passion for writing about cars working his way…

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