An important chapter in Bentley’s history will end in April 2024 with the end of production of its famous twelve-cylinder engine. This will have been produced in more than 105,000 copies, all assembled by hand at the factory in Crewe, England.
This decision is not surprising since the British manufacturer wants to accelerate its transition to electrified engines as part of its Beyond100 strategy. It will sell exclusively plug-in hybrid or electric models by 2026 (a first 100% electric Bentley is expected in 2025). Then, from 2030, no more combustion engines will remain in the range.
Currently, the Bentayga SUV and the Flying Spur sedan offer a plug-in hybrid version whose electric range is around 30 km in the best of all worlds.
An explosive final
Bentley’s 6.0-litre W12 engine made its debut in the Continental GT coupe in 2003. It will bid farewell explosively, achieving unprecedented power and torque, 740 horsepower at 5,500 rpm and 738 lb- ft. from 1,750 to 5,000 rpm. A larger capacity air intake and new turbochargers, among other things, make it all possible.
Photo: Bentley
But beware, this supercharged engine will be reserved for the 18 copies of the Bentley Batur concocted by the Mulliner customization division. All of them are already sold, despite their stratospheric price of £1.65 million (approximately $2.7 million Canadian at the time of this writing)!
The regular W12, the one that generates up to 650 horsepower, can still be ordered with the Speed version of the Continental GT, Bentayga and Flying Spur. But Bentley is advising interested buyers to hurry given the high demand.
By the way, the space freed up on the assembly line will be used to manufacture more engines for Bentley’s plug-in hybrid models.