Bentley Torcal Review: Crewe's First-Ever Electric SUV Is a Genuine Looker With 876 Horsepower, Reviewers Say

Bentley has unveiled the Torcal, its first fully electric model and the first entirely new Bentley in a decade, and early impressions from journalists who have seen and driven the car suggest the British luxury automaker has produced a genuinely compelling entry into the electric SUV market rather than a compromised transitional model.

The Torcal is built on the Premium Platform Electric architecture shared across the Volkswagen Group, the same underlying platform used by the Porsche Cayenne Electric. According to Bentley, the SUV is available in two trims: a standard Torcal producing up to 821 brake horsepower and 1,194 newton-meters of torque, and the more powerful Torcal S, which delivers up to 876 brake horsepower, or 888 metric horsepower, and 1,350 newton-meters, or 996 pound-feet, of torque, making it the most powerful production Bentley ever built. Bentley says the standard Torcal accelerates from zero to 60 miles per hour in 3.4 seconds, while the Torcal S completes the same sprint in as little as 2.8 to 2.9 seconds, figures the company describes, with characteristic understatement, as "sufficient."

Power comes from a 113-kilowatt-hour battery pack, of which 108 kilowatt-hours are usable, feeding dual electric motors mounted on each axle for standard all-wheel drive. Bentley says the standard Torcal delivers 375 miles of range on the WLTP testing cycle, a figure expected to translate to somewhat lower results, likely north of 300 miles, under the stricter EPA testing standard used in the United States. The Torcal's 800-volt electrical architecture supports DC fast charging at up to 400 kilowatts, allowing the battery to charge from 10% to 80% in approximately 16 minutes.

Reviewers who have seen the Torcal in person have generally praised its design as a successful modern interpretation of Bentley's traditional styling language. Motor1's assessment described the car as adapting Bentley's classic, squared-off grille into a pattern of light-up crystal diamonds, clear-centered on the standard model and black-filled on the S trim, giving the front end an upright, aggressive character distinct from the more rounded, aerodynamically driven designs common among competing electric SUVs. The outlet called the Torcal "one of the best-looking EVs I've seen," while noting the influence of the shared Cayenne platform remains visible in the vehicle's wheelbase and roofline when viewed in profile.

Top Gear's review offered a similarly favorable take on the design, while noting the illuminated grille, built using 76 hand-applied LED diamonds according to Bentley, makes the car strikingly visible on the road, particularly at night. The outlet described Bentley's overall approach as designing the Torcal to "blend seamlessly into its existing lineup," an EV built to avoid drawing attention to its electric drivetrain specifically, in contrast with more overtly futuristic electric SUV designs from rival luxury brands.

The interior has drawn particularly strong praise across multiple reviews. Edmunds described the Torcal's cabin as "one of Bentley's best ever," highlighting new design touches including multilayer pressed wood trim, wool upholstery options, exposed aluminum, and real metal buttons with knurled texturing. The review also praised Bentley's approach to digital interface design, noting that starting the vehicle triggers a video sequence in the gauge cluster designed to resemble light shining through crystal, an attempt to give the digital experience what the reviewer described as an analog feel consistent with Bentley's traditional craftsmanship.

The Autopian's review focused heavily on the Torcal's dynamic capabilities, noting the vehicle's substantial braking hardware, with standard iron discs measuring 16.5 inches in diameter at the front and 14.56 inches at the rear, expandable to 17.2 inches and 16.1 inches, respectively, with the optional carbon ceramic brake package. The outlet positioned the Torcal favorably against other ultra-luxury electric SUVs currently on the market, contrasting it with Mercedes-Benz's electric G-Class, criticized for its limited 239 miles of range at a comparable price point, and the Cadillac Celestiq, whose broader market positioning the reviewer described as still unclear.

Bentley has also emphasized battery longevity as a specific design priority for the Torcal, given the brand's positioning of its vehicles as long-term heirlooms rather than short-ownership-cycle products. According to Top Gear's reporting, the Torcal's nickel-manganese-cobalt-aluminum battery chemistry is designed to retain 90% of its original capacity after 100,000 miles of driving, a durability target Bentley has specifically highlighted given its cars' traditional role as vehicles intended to be passed down across generations.

Pricing for the Torcal starts at approximately $200,000 in the United States, according to Edmunds, positioning it as a new, more accessible entry point into the Bentley lineup below the existing Bentayga SUV, despite carrying nothing resembling entry-level features or materials. In the United Kingdom, Autocar reported the Torcal starting at £173,000, positioning it as a direct electric rival to high-end Range Rover models. The vehicle arrives roughly a year later than Bentley had originally planned, reflecting a broader revision to the company's electrification strategy, and represents a new, fourth model line for the brand rather than a direct electric replacement for any existing Bentley model.

With reviewers consistently praising the Torcal's design, interior craftsmanship and performance credentials, Bentley's first fully electric model appears, based on early impressions, to have avoided the pitfalls that have affected some other ultra-luxury electric SUV launches from rival automakers, positioning the Torcal as a genuine, credible entry into the growing high-end electric SUV segment rather than a compromised first attempt at electrification.