Bentley Bona Fides: The 5 Coolest Things Inside the Torcal EV

• What's new: The Bentley Torcal is the brand's first EV and second SUV, positioned below the Bentayga.
• Why it matters: The Torcal shares its underpinnings with the Porsche Cayenne Electric, and this opens the door for lots of new cabin tech, driver assistance systems and fast charging, all without losing Bentley's high-end fit and finish.
• Edmunds says: This honestly might be Bentley's nicest car. For real. There are premium touches in here you won't find in a Continental GT or Flying Spur.

Bentley used real crystal for the Torcal's startup graphic

OK, I realize this sounds like a gimmick, but when you see the Torcal's startup graphic for the first time in person, it's really quite impressive. The little video that plays inside the Torcal's gauge cluster when you turn it on is not an animation, but an actual recorded video of light shining through a cut crystal glass. The result is something that's more beautiful and realistic than any ol' recording. A Bentley spokesperson told me that the company tried several different computer-generated graphics, but none of them got the light refractions quite right, and filming light shining through real crystal was the only way to go. Good on 'em; the result looks killer.

The ambient lights move and flicker, and holy smokes, check out that grille

Building on the theme of crystal light (no, not that Crystal Light), Bentley employed some cool illumination to the Torcal's grille as well as the ambient interior glow. Inside, different lighting themes can be dialed up via the central display, and there's really interesting depth of color. Take the standard white ambience, for example: This isn't just a string of white LED lights. There are yellows and blues that mimic the different shadows and warm/cool tones of light as it looks when refracted by crystal. If you change to other colors, there are even bright/dark spots that move around the car's cabin depending on the time of day, sort of following the natural pattern of the sun.

And then there's the grille. Super in-your-face, for sure, but wow, does the Torcal make a statement. And unlike other luxury cars, there's a real 3D look to the Torcal's schnoz. Large, diamond-shaped bits of glass are set behind a clear panel, backlit by LED lights. You can have them fully illuminated, or like in the case of the bright yellow/green car above, with the centers of the diamonds blacked out for a less flashy effect. Honestly, I'm into it. Not your thing? Fine, just turn it off.

Is that wool?

Yep, and it comes from Fox Brothers, which has been making wool clothing since the 18th century. Wool fabric isn't totally new; Volvo's been offering this upholstery on its seats for a while. But the difference here is that, by not having to strengthen the wool for automotive-grade seat use, which is what Volvo has to do, Bentley keeps the soft, fibrous texture intact, since it's only placed on the door trim and the backs of the seats — places where you won't be putting your butt. I mean, I hope.

Wool isn't the only cool material used inside the Torcal. There's a new wood trim for the dashboard trim that's made up of 1,000 veneer off-cuts that are then pressed together and sliced to less than 1 millimeter of thickness. It sounds complex — and it is — but the result is an extremely eye-catching textured trim that'll be unique in every application. No two Torcal wood dashboards will look the same.

There's no stupid passenger screen

Martin Page, Bentley's program manager for the Torcal, told me the company didn't fit the SUV with a passenger screen because it "doesn't add value." I couldn't agree more. Passenger displays are dumb, and screens do not equal luxury. Why would you cover up the Torcal's beautiful layered wood or aluminum veneer for the sake of a small screen that shows redundant information? If you're a screen-obsessed passenger, you're probably messing around on your new folding iPhone anyway, right?

This isn't to say the Torcal lacks tech, of course. There's a new curved central screen that houses a brand-new infotainment system. And if this looks like the setup from the new Porsche Cayenne EV, well, that's because it is. But thankfully, Bentley keeps a bunch of analog controls intact, including a large controller dial, buttons and scroll wheels. The only tactile touch that's missing from the Torcal's cabin is a set of weighted plungers for the air vents — a hallmark trait you'll find in every other Bentley car.

The doors open and close by themselves

Again, not something new in the grand scheme of the automotive space, but still something nice to see. Nothing makes you feel like a poor person faster than having to extend your arm and close your own door. Ugh. Can you imagine?

Hold down the Torcal's unlock button and all four doors will open remotely. Just you getting in? Have the key in your pocket, pull the door handle, step back slightly and let the Torcal do its thing. Once you're seated and your foot hits the brake, the door will close. 

Coming next year

The Torcal will be available in base and S trims starting next summer, and while official U.S.-spec pricing is still TBD, expect this EV to command around $200,000 to start. In S guise, the Torcal produces 876 horsepower and will apparently be Bentley's quickest production car ever, able to accelerate to 60 mph in less than 3 seconds. An official range estimate is also unknown, but the Torcal should be able to go between 300 and 325 miles on a single charge, and with 400-kW charging capability, replenishing the battery won't take very long if you plug in to a Level 3 DC fast charger. I look forward to testing all of this in a few months' time.