Bentley ends the W12 engine and turns to the electrification of its models

Few brands have built a powerful and spectacular W12 engine. For years it has been the emblem and the trademark of many high-end models, but its life cycle seems to have come to an end. Restrictions on polluting emissions put an end to this impressive block. Now it is Bentley’s turn to end its production.

The year 2024 will see the last of these engines leave the factory. Until then, some 10,000 engines of this type will have been built at the Dream Factory the company has in Crewe, England. The reason is Bentley’s progress towards the goals set in its Beyond100 programme.

This aims for all of its models to be electrified from the early years of the next decade, so the brand is in a hurry to replace the engines available. The W12 engine was born in 2003 to be mounted in a Bentley Continental GT and, after 21 years on the market, will be replaced by other options, all of them hybrids.

Currently there are already two hybrid models in the Bentley range. They are the Bentayga and the Flying Spur Hybrid, two models that are enjoying considerable success on the market.

A farewell with style

The W12 engine will not leave just anyhow. It is being prepared with care, with a final version of this engine that has become the most powerful of all those created so far. It will be used in a Bentley Batur, a model handcrafted by Mulliner.

This last Bentley W12 will deliver 750 CV of power and a maximum torque of 1,000 Nm, obtained in the range between 1,750 and 5,000 rpm. Although this is, as we have said, the last version, a small number of the engine in its 659 CV version will still remain, mounted on several models of the brand.

Buyers of the Speed versions of the Bentley Continental GT, the Bentayga and the Flying Spur, as well as the Continental GT Mulliner Flying Spur Mulliner, will get the last units of this model in its previous version. Those who want to enjoy this engine in their cars will have to move quickly, because once all the cars that fit it are sold, it will never be available again.

The Crewe factory will start producing the blocks for the hybrid drive systems. That said, the 30 specialists who work on W12 engines will be trained to take on this new way of working and will become part of the production team.

A look back at the history of the Bentley W12 engine

This engine was born in 2003 and over these two decades its performance has been improved in terms of power, torque, emissions and refinement. Since that year, power has grown by 37% and torque by 54%. Emissions have moved in the opposite direction, having been reduced by 25%.

In 2015 the Bentley Bentayga was launched and for this model the engine was completely redesigned. This is the version that has been manufactured since then and the one mounted on those models on the market that retain the block. Each engine requires 6.5 hours to assemble at the Crewe plant.

It then goes through a testing process that squeezes out all the engine’s performance and fine-tunes it for installation in the selected car. As a curiosity, every week one of the engines produced undergoes an intensive testing process and is disassembled for examination, as part of the quality control programme.