The most powerful Bentley ever built doesn’t have an engine in the traditional sense, and it just took a quiet spin around Northern California wearing a wild camouflage wrap. This is the Torcal, and it marks a big shift for a brand that has spent more than a century chasing luxury and speed.
- The Torcal is Bentley’s first all-electric vehicle and its most muscular production model yet, making 838 horsepower and 737.5 pound-feet of torque.
- It slots into the Sports SUV segment as a lower, more athletic sibling to the Bentayga.
- The full public reveal is set for September 23, 2026.
A Sneak Peek From the Backseat
Picture the entrance of the Inn at Spanish Bay, a spot that had been covered in exotic metal just days earlier during Monterey Car Week. Now the lot looks ordinary again, filled with everyday drivers. Except for one shape in the corner, clearly an SUV, wrapped in a camouflage pattern styled as geometric shards of light.
Behind the wheel sat Martin Page, the Torcal’s product line director, giving a lucky few a passenger ride before the rest of the world gets a proper look. The cabin itself was wrapped in protective material, the kind of covering that feels a little like the lead apron you wear before an X-ray. You could feel the car more than see it, and that turned out to be the point.
Familiar Bentley Feel, Brand New Guts
At a glance the Torcal looks related to the Bentayga, but Page is quick to draw the lines between them. The powertrain and platform are completely different, and the proportions set the two apart. The Torcal rides lower and leans toward a sportier character, which is exactly why Bentley parks it in the Sports SUV category rather than treating it as a straight electric copy of the Bentayga.
The numbers back up that sporting intent. The Torcal makes 850 PS, or 838 horsepower, along with 1,000 Nm of torque, which works out to 737.5 pound-feet. That makes it the strongest production Bentley to date. All of that muscle has to move a battery-heavy body weighing close to 6,000 pounds, yet the instant shove of an electric drivetrain still arrives right now, sudden and heavier than you expect.
The Sound of a V-8 That Isn’t There
Here is one of the more interesting choices Bentley made. While Rolls-Royce keeps chasing total silence, Bentley wanted its EV to have a voice. The Torcal can whisper along quietly, but its default mode is more musical. Engineers landed on the tone of a heritage V-8, specifically the long-serving unit from the Continental Turbo R, as the sound that felt most true to the brand.
To keep it from feeling fake, artisans played drums to capture the natural imperfection of that old engine, then built those flaws into the audio so it reads as authentic rather than digital. Bentley also notes that the propulsion sound is tied to torque demand, not speed or throttle position, so the car responds to how hard it is working instead of how fast the needle climbs.
Comfort and Control in One Package
From the passenger seat, the Torcal handled a freeway on-ramp and a hard straight-line pull without the wallow you might expect from a tall, weighty SUV. Page described minimal body roll and little pitch or heave, with the suspension firming up during quick moves and then relaxing to smooth out the ride once things settle.
He summed up the target neatly, saying it should ride with the comfort of a Flying Spur while still moving with the athleticism of a Continental GT. The throttle map, brake feel, and steering were all benchmarked against that same GT. Bentley also confirms the Torcal shares some components with Porsche’s electric Cayenne platform, though every piece has been recalibrated for Bentley’s own character.
The Torcal matters beyond its horsepower figure. Page frames it as the next great Bentley, built on the same pillars that define the brand, with the power source becoming almost a secondary detail. That framing is the real story. Bentley now has a credible EV without having to bet everything on going electric. Offering both gas and battery power gives the automaker room to move as buyers make up their minds. The camouflage comes off on September 23, and that is when we’ll see whether the finished product lives up to the ride.
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