The head of design for Bentley is “experimenting” with styling for an upcoming electric car, saying he “admires” BMW for creating the i3 electric car even if customers call it “ugly”.

Speaking to Autocar, Bentley design director Stefan Sielaff admitted the proportions of an electric vehicle would “look different” to those of a conventional car.

“We are experimenting at the moment with an EV. My instinct is to create an EV which is a very modern step forward. It always has to be a Bentley, but the proportions of an EV will look different,” he said.

“If we look at the Taycan, it’s still a Porsche. If you look at Tesla, they don’t look deliberately dramatic. I admire, as a designer, BMW for doing the i3, but if you speak to customers, they say it looks ugly,” he added.

Sielaff said the Crewe-based firm had to “look at the bigger perspective and be brave”.

“When it arrives at market, it has to be right. Bentley’s brand identity will be very helpful,” he said.

As Autocar points out, Bentley has previously suggested it won’t build an electric vehicle until the technology has advanced far enough, with a tentative launch date set down for 2025.

Original article from Car