Bentley’s first electric car will not rely on a fake engine note to give it some character. According to Bentley, the upcoming Torcal will use an original soundtrack created with real instruments, including drums, viola and bass guitar.
The music is designed to capture some of the energy and presence of Bentley’s V8 engines without directly copying the sound of one. It will also react to the driver’s inputs, building as the car accelerates and making the soundtrack part of the driving experience.
Finding the right sound is especially important for an electric Bentley. Quiet running suits a luxury car, but removing the engine can also take away some of the drama drivers associate with speed and performance. Bentley wants the Torcal to remain refined without making it feel disconnected or lifeless.
Engineers began by studying the company’s combustion history, from its supercharged cars of the 1930s to later V8 and W12 models. They recorded and analysed a Bentley V8 in a studio, but soon found that rhythm offered a better starting point than simply reproducing an exhaust note.
That led to an unusual experiment using two parabolic speakers. One played the sound of a Bentley V8, while the other carried a live drummer’s performance. Moving between them revealed similarities in their rhythm, energy and small variations.
Bentley says those tiny imperfections helped give both sounds a more human quality. A combustion engine does not produce every beat with machine-like uniformity, and the team wanted to recreate that natural variation through musical performance and acoustic textures.
The Torcal will become Bentley’s first fully electric model when it is revealed on September 23. Full technical details remain under wraps, but the luxury SUV will sit below the Bentayga in size.
Bentley has taken an unusual route, but its focus on rhythm and real instruments makes the soundtrack feel more considered. It allows the Torcal to develop its own voice without pretending that a petrol engine is still hiding under the bonnet.