World premiere set for Wednesday

Designed and built entirely in Crewe, England

1938 factory building converted into EV production line

350 million pounds invested in new line, paint shop and more

The new production line at Bentley's Crewe factory in England, where the brand's first all-electric vehicle, the Torc, will be built. Bentley is installing new manufacturing equipment and a paint shop at the site in preparation for Torc production. [Bentley Motors]
The new production line at Bentley's Crewe factory in England, where the brand's first all-electric vehicle, the Torc, will be built. Bentley is installing new manufacturing equipment and a paint shop at the site in preparation for Torc production. [Bentley Motors]

Bentley will give the world its first look at the Torc, the brand's first all-electric vehicle, on Wednesday. The automaker has converted a 1938 building at its Crewe factory in England — which has produced Bentley vehicles for 80 years — into an electric vehicle production line, committing a total of 350 million pounds ($448 million) to developing the new model and preparing for its production.

Bentley Motors announced Friday that the Torc, its first fully electric luxury urban SUV, will be unveiled at 7:19 p.m. British time on Wednesday. The 7:19 p.m. reveal time is a nod to 1919, the year Bentley was founded.

The Torc's design, engineering and production will all take place at Bentley's headquarters in Crewe. The company has used the site as its primary manufacturing base for roughly 80 years, having begun vehicle production there in 1946.

Ahead of the brand's first electric model, the factory has undergone a sweeping transformation. The Torc will be built on a new production line inside what Bentley calls its "Dream Factory."

The building housing the new line dates to 1938. Originally used as a machining space and more recently as a research and development facility, it has been gutted and refloored to accommodate autonomous guided vehicles that carry Torc body shells through the assembly process on their own.

The production line blends Bentley's traditional handcrafting methods with new automated equipment. The 350 million pounds investment covers the Torc's development, the new assembly line and a new paint shop, among other upgrades to the Crewe facility. The new electric vehicle assembly line is nearing completion.

Changes at Crewe also shaped the design process. The Torc is the first production model developed at Bentley's new design center, which opened last year. Housed in a renovated 1939 building, the facility is staffed by designers responsible for exterior styling, interior design and materials.

The Crewe site currently employs more than 4,000 people. The total site covers 521,111 square meters, with 166,930 square meters of floor space inside its buildings.

Even as it transitions to electric vehicles, Bentley intends to keep its handcrafted production methods running in parallel. Alongside the Torc, Crewe will continue to produce the Super Sports — a high-performance, rear-wheel-drive model powered by a V8 engine — and the Speed Six Continuation series built by Mulliner, Bentley's bespoke division.

The Torc carries particular significance as the first fully electric production car to emerge from Bentley's electrification strategy. The brand once set a target of converting its entire lineup to battery-electric vehicles by 2035, but this year decided not to set a new deadline for full electrification, citing shifts in market demand and charging infrastructure. Plug-in hybrid and internal combustion models will continue alongside the Torc for now, though the Wednesday reveal date for the electric model remained unchanged.

On the financial side, Bentley is also pursuing cost efficiencies. In March, the company reported last year's sales of 2.6 billion euros ($2.98 billion) and operating profit of 216 million euros, while announcing a restructuring plan that could affect up to 275 positions as it prepares for electrification and new model launches.

Full details of the Torc's design, specifications and performance are to be announced at the global premiere on Wednesday. Bentley describes the Torc as a "luxury urban SUV" — a segment the brand has not previously occupied.


kwater@heraldcorp.com