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We tend to think of battery electric vehicles as cutting-edge and high-tech—and they are—but how do you blend those aspects with the old-world craftsmanship that’s the hallmark of a Bentley? How does the 2028 Bentley Torcal welcome in this new era while still staying true to the automaker’s 107 years of history?
Same way it always has, turns out: with fastidious attention to detail and keeping the human touches front and center. After all, if it’s to achieve the marque’s own goal of becoming the next best Bentley, then the Torcal better come out swinging.
Real Crystal
Bentley’s decision to totally electrify an SUV first makes sense, as Bentley Bentaygas apparently account for 45 percent of sales. We went in expecting the Torcal to simply be an electric Bentayga, but it’s definitely not just that. To start, it’s lower and shorter than that SUV.
The EXP 15 concept’s influence is obvious, especially in the upright front fascia. Four vertical lights inspired by the Bentley Continental T make up the new signature, and this is the first model to employ Bentley’s new winged logo. You’d have to be a real Bentley afficionado to spot the difference, though. The drag coefficient, we’re told, is 0.279.
Get used to this look, because it’s the new face of Bentley moving forward. Not just for EVs, but all models.
By now, you’ve noticed the sparkles. Bentley said because the electric powertrain doesn’t require a traditional radiator, that freed designers to experiment with something new. What we get is a nose full of literal cut crystals—76 of them, in fact, in three sizes and sourced from local crystal-maker Cumbria. These all sit behind a single plane of composite, the same plastic used in headlights. Upon unlocking the car, a welcome sequence sends beams of light ricocheting over the glass for a dazzling display. We don’t know what repairing or replacing the crystals will look like should you get into a fender-bender, so be careful.
Skating backward from the nose, across the beltline, and stopping at the C-pillar is the “endless bonnet” strip of metal trim that comes in either black or silver. It highlights the Torcal’s sizable rear haunches. At the back, the crystal motif continues in the thin taillights, which also wear the diamond-shaped faceting within.
There’s a traditional trunk, of course, but also a front trunk that could fit a small carry-on suitcase. Two new colors, Electrum Satin and Astral, also make their debut.
Luxury Tech Inside
Step inside to be greeted by familiar Bentley fare. Rich leathers and quality materials abound. The leather diamond-shaped quilting can now wear various perforation sizes, as Bentley has introduced a new tool for this. Optionally, a new engineered multicolored walnut veneer can feature up to 1,000 layers of pressed wood for an incredibly textured effect. There’s also the option of a triple-striped aluminum. Finally, Merino wool provides the newest upholstery option. It’s not a blend but 100 percent the real stuff, sourced from Fox Brothers in the U.K., who up until now had only crafted the material for suits.
The seats, at least in the very brief time we experienced them, remain comfortable and supportive. The rear seat is indeed spacious and doesn’t make you feel like you’re sitting atop a stack of battery cells, as you often do in other EVs.
The new curved central screen is where the Torcal loses the plot a bit. True, it’s incredibly high-resolution, neat to look at, and responsive to use. Bentley also claims it ensured a good balance between physical buttons and touchscreen controls. But the lovely climate adjuster “organ stops” with their superlative tactile feedback are gone. In their place are vents you direct via the screen, something we’re never a fan of. A switchable glass roof is a fun touch, but it’s the only roof available, and changing the pattern or opacity requires another visit to a touchscreen menu.
Other tech includes power doors all around, as well as facial recognition capabilities and an augmented reality head-up display. There’s an Easter egg hidden in the driver screen startup animation where footage of a real hand delivering a shining glass appears every other few dozen startups, so you never know when you’ll see it next. Optional audio equipment brings 28 speakers, including seat tweeters and headrest speakers, with Dolby Atmos that’ll generate 1,780 watts of sound
You’ll also notice a lack of a passenger screen. This, according to Bentley, was a conscious decision, as it doesn’t see it as a value add. Bentley’s definitely onto something there, because apparently the automakers that do offer the screen are finding no one uses it.
The Sound of a V-8
Sound is and always has been important to the Bentley experience. An EV, obviously, has no sound, so Bentley went out of its way to record a whole album from real-world noises for it. It recorded the sound of a leather hammer tapping on the material for the turn signals, for example, and the digital assistant sound was created by a glass harp. You know Gracie Hart’s talent in Miss Congeniality? It’s that sound. The entry sound was crafted by birdsong.
For the sound of driving, Bentley didn’t just tape the sound of a V-8 and send it as is. Inspired by the thrums of the 6.75-liter V-8, it had drummers re-create the rhythm. That’s what you hear both inside and outside the car, and the sound is linked to a torque sensor, so it responds to the physics of motion rather than throttle position. The faster the car moves, the quicker the drumbeats are.
The sound is off by default when the car is in Comfort mode, on in Bentley and Refresh modes, and loudest in Sport mode. But if a customer finds it displeasing, it can be shut off regardless of mode.
Fast Charging and Acceleration
The Torcal is based on the Porsche Cayenne PP41 EV platform, with bodies coming from Volkswagen’s Zwickau plant in Germany. Two models will be offered to start, the base Core version (810 hp and 881 lb-ft of torque) and the S First Edition (876 hp and 996 lb-ft of torque) though both will utilize the 113-kWh battery pack and all-new electrical 800-volt architecture. Bentley says the battery will retain 90 percent of its charge after eight years and 100,000 cycles.
Acceleration to 60 is an estimated 3.4 seconds in the Core model and 2.9 seconds in the S First Edition. According to the optimistic WLTP estimate, the Torcal will return 375 miles of range, and the battery can charge from 10 to 80 percent in 16 minutes at a 400-kW fast charger. It has a towing capacity of just under 6,000 pounds.
In place of anti-roll bars, the Torcal rides on advanced, adaptive two-valve dampers that can raise and lower independently, resulting in what is surely a phenomenal ride. We certainly thought so in a brief first ride of a prototype model. The driver will be able to select from four driving and chassis modes (Comfort, Refresh, Bentley, and Sport), and each one is distinct. Rear-wheel steering of up to 7 degrees is standard, and hands-free driving will be offered in certain markets.
Bentley’s New Dawn
The Torcal will be built in Crewe, England, in a new, state-of-the-art factory Bentley spent billions of pounds revamping. The space was previously used to house spare parts and was once used to build the Rolls-Royce Merlin V-12 engines used in British fighter planes during WWII. It has never been used to build vehicles until now. The Torcal will be painted at a similarly new and state-of-the-art paint shop that’s more advanced and efficient.
Unlike the Bentayga, the Torcal is not built to support a hybrid platform. It will only ever be an EV; interestingly, though, Bentley CEO Frank-Steffen Walliser said if the SUV had a V-8, it would look exactly the same. It’s philosophy is, therefore, vehicle first and propulsion method second. On this front, Walliser is also unconcerned about competition coming from the Chinese luxury brands. In his eyes, the Chinese market produces tech-rich and fast cars, not luxury cars. Nothing like a Bentley.
“We will not give up on China,” he told MotorTrend, despite a steadily declining year-over-year market share there.
But in poking and prodding around the Torcal, we can tell—at least on this first pass—that it wears every bit the same wealth of materials as the Bentleys that have come before it. New and pioneering automakers like Lucid, Rivian, and Tesla aren’t beholden to a past. Bentley is, and even though the Torcal lacks cylinders, it maintains the craftsmanship. All’s left now is to drive it.
Pricing will be announced at a later date. Orders open late September, and the first models ship in Q2 of 2027.
2028 Bentley Torcal Specifications | |
BASE PRICE | $250,000 (est) |
LAYOUT | Dual-motor, AWD, 4-5 pass, 4-door SUV |
MOTOR | 810-876-hp/881-996-lb-ft AC DC permanent-magnet electric |
TRANSMISSION | 1-speed auto |
CURB WEIGHT | 6,150 (est) |
WHEELBASE | 118.9 inches |
L x W x H | 196.2 x 79.4 x 65.9 in |
0–60 MPH | 2.9-3.4 sec (mfr est) |
EPA CITY/HWY/COMB FUEL ECON | Not yet rated |
RANGE | 375 miles (mfr est) |
ON SALE | Q2 2027 |
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