Bentley SUV capitalises on climate change

Bentley's new Bentayga SUV has been designed for serious off-roading even if the vast majority of buyers won't get the tyres dirty.

But it's the climatic uncertainty many are blaming on climate change that the brand used by the Queen says could earn it some additional sales.

"With all the climatic influences we have … we see the storms we see the big rain falls - I think you purchase a little bit of survivor mentality," Bentley CEO Wolfgang Durheimer told Drive.

"95, 98 per cent of our customers never will take the car serious off-road, but it's good to know it will do it."

The Bentayga was tested in snow, sand, mud, gravel and rocks across four continents to ensure it can travel where most high performance SUVs can't.

It's also claimed to be the fastest and most powerful SUV on the market, with the turbocharged 12-cylinder engine said to endow it with a top speed north of 300km/h.

The most obvious competitor to the Bentayga is the world's first luxury SUV, the Range Rover.

But Durheimer claims the Bentley is in another class for luxury – and brings more performance.

It will also be more expensive, with prices expected to start above $400,000 when the Bentayga arrives in Australia late in 2016.

Durheimer says the Bentayga is the start of an SUV onslaught from Bentley, one which is initially expected to grow sales from last year's tally of 11,020 globally to 15,000.

"Bentley is a very, very strong brand, it has a lot of potential," he says.

"We are not at the ceiling with this car. The market shows you … what kind of a variety of SUVs is possible today.

"Now we have one body style and we think is the one that really will hit the market; we have four seats, five seats and in a year from now we will have seven seats.

"Of course there are other body styles possible."