2026 Bentley Torcal
| Torcal de Antequera is a striking rocky landscape in Andalusia. |
Walter Owen Bentley certainly could not have imagined, when he founded his company in 1919 with the goal of 'winning Le Mans', that this company would 2026 succeed as a manufacturer of an electric car,
a complete reversal of its original goals.
It is also remarkable that his company has survived, even, in principle, only with its name. In fact, it had already needed to be 'rescued' in 1926; its final collapse came in 1931 in connection with the
Great Depression.
Bentleys weren't just Rolls-Royces with a modified radiator grille from the very beginning. At first, a different technology was what made them the sportier models in the Rolls-Royce lineup. ChatGPT refers to them
as the sportier version of the same basic technical concept.
Bentley has now even 'conquered' the plant in Crewe, which has always been regarded as somewhat more significant than Bentley's origins in Cricklewood and Derby. Unfortunately, however, the company is still
sreliant on suppliers, this time within the VW Group, specifically Porsche and Audi.
Only with the Porsche Cayenne EV platform could the company's first all-electric car be built. However, it is said to have been significantly revised to meet the organization's own requirements. The shining star
above the platform is the 800V technology.
If you add to that the specifications of the two engine options and the outstanding charging technology, you've already covered the key aspects of the vehicle. However, it's definitely worth taking another look at the
suspension.
Bentley calls this the fully active chassis. It might actually work better without any rigid stabilizers. Rolling motions are compensated by counter-moments of the variable dampers. It's faster and, above all, more
precise.
The rear-axle steering ensures a comparatively small turning circle despite the long wheelbase. What stands out about this car is that it tries to carve out its own identity, distinct from the mass-produced models
from VW and Audi.
Which brings us back to the plant in Crewe. People there take particular pride in manufacturing such luxury cars, whose quality, reflected in the purchase price, one only gradually comes to appreciate. Even back then, it
seems that the factory in Crewe was more important to Ferdinand Piëch than the Rolls-Royce name.
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