When Bentley unveiled its recent Supersports model and announced it was postponing its first full EV launch, it was interesting to see how many were quick to paint the move as “anti-woke” – a two-fingers up salute to the EV revolution.
But from the perspective of an outsider looking in, the Supersports launch isn’t a rejection of EVs per se (Bentley has plans for the world’s first all-electric luxury urban SUV). Rather, it’s a loud and proud reminder of Bentley’s legacy, executed at a pivotal moment in automotive history. Think of it not as Bentley trying to reinvent itself but Bentley doubling down on what the brand’s all about: performance, luxury and the emotive thrill of driving.
It also talks to a much broader narrative around the future of supercars in an electric era – an era that threatens to reduce or eradicate everything that makes a luxury sports car so desirable.
Why EVs represent an existential threat to supercars
In the luxury space of high-performance supercars, people want a statement and an experience. Something outrageous and non-conformist. Typically, that was rooted in power – best brought to life by exhilarating acceleration and blistering speed.
But the new EV era has upended all this. When the lights turn green, a mid-priced family EV sedan can give the fastest supercar a run for its money. The supercar’s most famous point of difference – speed – has disappeared; they’re being bested at what made them ‘super’ in the first place.
So what’s a supercar brand to do? They could go electric, but evidence suggests even with impeccable performance credentials, they’d struggle.
Reframing brand relevance: looking back to move forward
The opportunity for supercars is rooted in the intrinsic nature of the EV driving experience. While it may be fast, near silent and perfectly smooth, it’s also, in the vein of many modern experiences, physically and emotionally frictionless, sanitised.
What cars at the sporty end need to do is go back to their roots and reinforce what made them famous in the first place: the supercar experience. Which is both psychological and physical: a feeling of transgression, outrageousness and wilful norm defying, a leaning into the sensoriality of the experience. It’s the acutely unconventional looks and styling, the throaty purr unleashed into a roar, the jolt of acceleration and kick of gear shifts. The vibration, the noise, the spectacle. And the best way to currently deliver all that is with petrol power.
This is what the new Bentley Supersports is built to deliver. It embraces the visceral, multi-sensory, theatrical experience of driving – unapologetically loud, powerful and immersive in a way no EV can match. With its launch, Bentley has pulled the ace from its sleeve: delivering an emotional, sensory driving experience that its customers are looking for.
Why smart branding creates business advantage in disruptive times
The broader takeaway for brands: first, always have a clear idea of why people buy you. For Bentley, brand heritage and the product story both play a part. But it also knows that its audience of Supersports enthusiasts craves the thrill of the drive as much as the high-spec interiors. Every business should know what real need it fulfils, beyond basic product utility – and, crucially, what this experience looks like.
Second: remember what made you famous, and don’t be afraid to lean into that legacy to stay relevant. Markets and technologies will evolve, but, as Bentley has shown, reinterpreting your heritage is more powerful than discarding it. This new Supersports takes the brand’s 100-year-old performance ethos and reimagines it in a slick, no-holds-barred Bentley package. It feels contemporary and exclusive, but unmistakably Bentley. And guaranteed to cast a halo over the rest of its motoring portfolio.
Rather than a two-fingers-up to EVs, Bentley’s car launch is a masterclass in using brand to navigate disruption. It’s turned its legacy into a competitive asset for the EV era, reinforcing why customers fell in love with its cars to begin with.
In the context of automotive disruption, it chose to amplify its core essence instead of downplaying it. And far from being left behind, it demonstrates that in the race towards an electric future, a confident brand position may prove the strongest advantage of all.
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