2023 Bentley Batur First Look Review: Past, Present, And Future Align

It's not often that a coupe arrives as a successor to a convertible, but that's what the new Bentley Batur is to the Bacalar drop-top. The Bacalar relaunched coachbuilding at the brand's bespoke Mulliner division, and the ultra-exclusive Batur continues that tradition.

The Batur is an oddity in that it is powered by the brand's most powerful W12 - an engine from another era - yet it previews the design language of Bentley's forthcoming battery-electric vehicles. In essence, the Batur bridges the gap between Bentley's past and future, and it does so as a first step towards a final goodbye for the iconic power plant. If we're being honest, there are worse ways to live in the present moment than with a 730-horsepower W12 grand tourer.

When Is The Bentley Batur Coming Out?

The Batur was unveiled at Monterey Car Week recently, but it will only be coming out next year - two years before Bentley's first BEV is due in 2025. After an extensive development program, the Bentley Batur's release date has been set for mid-2023, when deliveries are expected to kick off.

2023 Bentley Batur Price and Competition

The 2023 Bentley Batur's price hardly matters since all 18 examples slated for production have already been sold. For what it's worth, those lucky Mulliner customers paid £1.65 million (approximately $1.95 million) each, excluding taxes and options. We're willing to bet that the final cost was far beyond this.

Finding direct rivals for a car like this is not easy. Although priced well in excess of the Batur, we'd consider the Bugatti W16 Mistral a worthy alternative for collectors. Like the Batur, the W16 Mistral celebrates the end of the road of an iconic engine - in this case, that's Bugatti's exceptional W16.

Other grand tourer rivals that are closer to the 2023 Batur in price include the Bugatti Chiron. And, for similar money, Ferrari will sell you a Daytona SP3, but that's a much less gentlemanly performance machine that will target a different customer entirely.

New Bentley Batur Exterior And Colors

The Batur is ushering in a new era of design for Bentley. Gone are the familiar rounded headlights of almost every other Bentley, and in its place are sleeker clusters that surround a larger, square grille. The Bentley logo has now been incorporated into the grille design itself. Buyers will have the option of selecting the exterior brightware in any combination of light, dark, gloss, or titanium - or the vibrant ombre effect of the debut example. The grille of the car revealed in Monterey was finished in Gloss Dark Titanium with graduated Hyperactive Orange accents. The front splitter, rear diffuser, and side skirts can be finished in either carbon fiber or a sustainably-sourced Natural Fiber composite.

The side view stays a bit truer to Bentley coupe tradition with powerful rear haunches, a narrow glasshouse, and large wheels. Sitting on special 22-inch wheels, the standard items are finished in Black Crystal and then surface bright machined and polished. However, darker wheels or ones that match the paint can be selected.

Moving toward the rear of the car, there is a gently flowing roofline that leads to a smart rear end with all-new ultra-slim taillights and a retractable spoiler. The overall design is called 'resting beast stance' by the manufacturer and embodies muscular strength combined with elegance and grace. We think the Bentley Batur's exterior epitomizes these characteristics very well.

As with any Mulliner product, customization potential is vast. We've seen one of the bespoke Bentley Batur colors at launch, called Bonneville Pearlescent Silver, but there's likely no end to what paint colors you can choose.

Bentley Batur Dimensions

The dimensions of the Bentley Batur have not been revealed, but since its mechanicals and floorplan are based on those of the Continental GT, we expect it to be similar in size to that coupe. The Continental GT has a length of 190.9 inches, a 112.2-inch wheelbase, a width of 77.4 inches, and a height of 55.3 inches.

No curb weight figure has been given, but the Batur likely weighs more than 5,000 pounds. The Conti GT Speed tips the scales at just under 5,011 lbs.

Bentley Batur Engine And Performance

A truly legendary engine powers the Batur, and it's especially potent in this guise. The 6.0-liter turbocharged W12 is a hand-crafted beauty that goes all the way back to the Continental GT of 2002. For the mechanical heart of this special series, the automaker equipped new intercoolers, a revised intake system, upgraded turbos, and recalibrated the Bentley Batur's engine for massive outputs of 730 hp and 738 lb-ft of torque.

Bentley is far too posh to quote either a 0-60 time or a top speed, but considering that the Continental GT Speed tops out at 208 mph and reaches 60 mph in 3.5 seconds, one can only imagine how rapid the Batur is. After all, the Speed makes only 650 hp and 664 lb-ft.

The more powerful W12 is hooked up to Bentley's eight-speed dual-clutch transmission and, with all-wheel drive, should put down its power in a typically dignified fashion. What is hopefully a bit less dignified is the sound coming from the new sports titanium exhaust system. These have 3D-printed finishers in titanium, which is a first for Bentley.

Bentley says that the Batur will be its most dynamic coupe yet. It features adaptive three-chamber air springs, and using the four-mode Drive Dynamics Control, the driver can select from Sport, Bentley, Comfort, and Custom modes. These modes change the effect of the 48V electric active anti-roll control system, which can provide as much as 960 lb-ft of anti-roll torque in as little as 0.3 seconds. Further to this, the system can decouple the wheels at either end of each axle or adjust the roll stiffness.

To boost traction and cornering grip, there is an electronic limited-slip differential with torque vectoring. The Batur can also initiate torque vectoring by brake, whereby the inside wheels are lightly braked on exiting a corner and sending power to the outside wheels for better traction. Speaking of brakes, these are Bentley's CSiC (carbon-silicon-carbide) items with 10-piston front and four-piston rear calipers.

Gas Mileage

There are no mpg ratings for the Batur just yet, but for reference, the Continental GT Speed only manages 12/20/15 mpg city/highway/combined, and we don't expect the Batur to be any less thirsty.

Bentley Batur Interior And Cargo

The new Bentley Batur coupe seats two in sublime comfort, building on the Bacalar's sumptuous interior by adding even more luxury - in sustainable materials. For upholstery options, buyers can choose between low-carbon leather sourced from Scotland, sustainable tannage Italian leather, or suede-like Dinamica. Naturally, as this is Mulliner, the combinations and colors available are extensive, and whatever buyers choose will be matched to the recycled-yarn carpets found inside the footwells. The plush seats get bespoke embroidery and contrast stitching, and there is a new feathered artisan piping around the seat centers and the steering wheel.

A range of veneers is available for the interior fascias, including a new natural fiber composite, which is a sustainable alternative to carbon fiber finished in satin lacquer. The passenger fascia is the ultimate tribute to the W12 engine - a unique laser-etched sound wave of the engine's audio signature.

Interior accents in the Bentley Batur can be had in bright or dark color schemes with titanium as an option. Some of the controls, such as the Dynamic Drive Selector and the 12 o'clock mark on the steering wheel, can even be had in 3D-printed 18-karat gold.

As for cargo space in the Bentley Batur, there are no official specs for trunk volume. The storage space behind the two seats is useful, though not massive, and should fit two carry-on bags, at least. There are also modest door pockets and a glovebox for your knick-knacks inside the cabin.