If big, gas-burning engines are what define a Bentley, then the new Torcal has a real problem because the SUV packs a fully electric powertrain. Customers might not mind, though, because the system churns out lots of torque. Plus, it has enough horsepower to make a Porsche 911 Turbo S whimper. All of this drama happens the instant the driver presses the accelerator.
So, if the latest model still has the power – more than any other production Bentley ever produced – does the lack of a gas-burning V8 or W12 make the Torcal any less of a Bentley? That’s the kind of thinking the company is trying to curb by serving its first EV to patrons with extra additives stirred in from classic models.
The First Silent Bentley Is Far From Quiet
W.O. Bentley liked to go fast, and his affinity for speed often showed up in the vehicles his company built. But he also wanted a powertrain capable of impressive speeds that complemented the luxury of the coachbuilt bodies attached to his rolling chassis.
In 1930, more than a decade after the company was founded, W.O. Bentley concocted the powertrain he believed would power the first automobile capable of traveling 100 MPH in dead silence: an 8.0-liter straight-six. Others with the same goal followed, but silence would come through sound deadening, low RPMs, and cotton-packed ear canals – not as a byproduct of the powertrain itself.
Today, roughly 96 years after Bentley crafted the first of many powertrains to whisper across the land at low-altitude cruising speeds, the Torcal has arrived as the brand’s first completely silent vehicle, powertrain and all. As the first electric vehicle in Bentley’s portfolio, the Torcal follows a long lineage of powerful vehicles and marks a pivotal moment for the brand. The vehicle is also the first of more Bentley EVs to come.
Going off of Bentley’s aspirations for his cars a century ago, this doesn’t sound like such a big deal. However, the luxury brand is ruffling feathers among some fans by taking such a significant step away from its combustion powertrain legacy.
Rather than shun over nine decades of engineering prowess that followed the “first silent Bentley” in 1930, the Torcal pays homage to the past through what some might call commonplace EV gimmicks. For example, the Torcal is not entirely silent because it emits a sound taking inspiration from the brand’s iconic V8. The fake noise is necessary, though, because EVs must produce artificial noise below 30 kilometers per hour (18 MPH) to alert pedestrians in many markets.
Where some brands approached this regulation with a bubbly, Jetsons-like noise, or that of a sea siren, spaceship, or a holy being (chances are, you’re hearing a Toyota RAV4 in reverse, not a rapture in a Target parking lot), Bentley took a nostalgic approach. The company drew on its long history of combustion engines to mimic them with the Bentley Dynamic Symphony, a feature the Torcal boasts as a connection to its roots. The result is a refined approach to synthesized EV sound.
2028 Bentley TorcalBentley
Musicians were tasked with recreating the beat of the 6.75-liter L-Series V8 that powered Bentley and Rolls-Royce motorcars for nearly 60 years. An orchestra of strings, drums, and guitars assembled to produce a human-created sound “complete with imperfections,” as Bentley put it, which the Torcal emits at both low speeds and when cruising on the open road.
The Sound Isn’t The Only Bentley Thing About It
On the outside, the Torcal is still as Bentley as they come. Aside from the faux-V8 noises, it still hosts classic Bentley styling signifiers like a big grille, ornate knurled headlamp housings, and a squared-off front end. Although, the roughly rectangular headlamps are a departure from the round crystal units in the Continental GT, Flying Spur, and Bentayga that mimic cut-glass whiskey tumblers.
Oh, that grille? Since it’s electric, it doesn’t need such a big opening to cool the powertrain. The lower bumper vents handle that job. Instead, the illuminated diamond grille, stacked with 76 real crystals, serves as accessory jewelry, with no function beyond enhancing the Torcal’s presence.
2028 Bentley TorcalBentley
The Torcal is the smallest four-door Bentley ever, measuring 197 inches in length with a 119-inch wheelbase. That’s over 10 inches shorter than the Bentayga, with a wheelbase just 6.0 inches shorter. The Torcal is identical in size to its corporate cousin, the Porsche Cayenne Electric. They share the same platform: the co-developed Premium Platform Electric that underpins Porsche and Audi models, including the Macan Electric, Audi A6 E-Tron, and Q6 E-Tron.
In the Torcal, the 113-kilowatt-hour battery, combined with a new 800-volt EV architecture, delivers enough electrons to punch out 810 horsepower and 881 pound-feet of torque in the Core models. In Sport models, output increases to 876 hp and 996 lb-ft. Bentley says it can travel up to 375 miles on the WLTP cycle (which generally has higher numbers than the EPA in the United States) and charge from 10-80% in 16 minutes at 400 kW.
The Torcal is powerful enough to be the most powerful car ever to wear the Bentley wings. However, it also lives up to the brand’s famous levels of luxury. The opulent features include automatic rear doors that open and close at the press of a button and seatbelts that can unbuckle and buckle automatically. Bentley’s new climate control system tracks occupants’ body temperature and adjusts the cabin climate accordingly. It can even pick a powertrain mode based on your mood, though that feature is not available at launch.
The Torcal is high-tech, too, but it’s still a Bentley. That means screens are only where they should be, and none intrude on driving or aesthetics. Designers rejected the idea of a passenger screen and kept the curved center infotainment screen low on the dashboard. Some physical controls, like the organ-stop climate controls, are gone, replaced with screen-based controls that use a haptic engine and custom clinking sounds when tapped. Just like the synthetic noises outside, the ones here were crafted and recorded, too.
Speaking of sounds, Bentley’s 1,780-watt sound system uses 28 speakers and Dolby Atmos programming to make every riff of a guitar solo vibrate than the occupants’ souls. Tech that belongs in a vehicle at this price, with an estimated cost north of $200,000 when it goes on sale, includes such a stereo, plus facial recognition that scans the driver for security and adjusts preset settings like drive mode and seat position. After all, Ian Fleming penned James Bond as a Bentley driver in the original books, so there’s precedent to make a Bentley fit for a super spy …even before Q gets his hands on it.
Bentley’s First Stab At Genre-Bending Is A Strong One
2028 Bentley TorcalBentley
Just as Rolls-Royce was able to lower its average owner age with the addition of its first electric model, the Spectre, Bentley is sure the Torcal will open the door to a new type of client that wouldn’t normally be looking at one. This is thanks to both the vehicle’s new EV powertrain and its designation as an “urban vehicle,” as the brand puts it, meaning a smaller crossover better suited to crowded European city streets.
THe Cayenne-sized footprint is smaller than the Bentayga and the Flying Spur, the only other four-door currently available from Bentley. The EV powertrain puts it ahead of even the most powerful Speed models, which use hybrid V8s to make 771 hp.
The Torcal has a lot riding on its shoulders. Bentley knows this, its parent company Volkswagen knows this, and we know this, too. Whether it’s done enough to draw in current Bentley owners with nods to classic models while ushering in the future of the brand is still up for debate.
As for new customers, Bentley is flinging the doors open wider than ever. The Torcal is the fourth model in the lineup, slotting in at the cheaper end after the Mulsanne left the range. It’s a crossover, electric, and, most importantly, brand-new – each factor is something Bentley is banking on to make its latest model one of its most successful offerings ever. W.O. Bentley wouldn’t mind another quieter, faster, and equally luxurious vehicle bearing his name. This time, it’s to ensure more people know what the Bentley name means.
Sources: Bentley, Porsche
