Bentayga Bentley Bentayga First Drives/Reviews
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Rainer271
Kraftwagen König
2016 BENTLEY Bentayga W12 Review
Bentaygus Maximus. A breed possessing lithe feline powers and the cargo-hauling ability of a pachyderm, typically found in its region of origin, Crewe, near Cheshire, England. A wild new species of Cheshire Cat? You could say that. Us commoners just refer to it as the 2017 Bentley Bentayga.
When Bentley first started shopping their idea for an SUV around, the great unwashed scoffed at such a plan. The Bentley EXP 9 F concept was first shown at the 2012 Geneva Motor Show, and gathered um, tepid response at best, owing to its rather upright and boxy design. In fact, its original profile pronounced more like a vintage ambulance or hearse.
Back to the drawing board.
Honestly, we agreed. The new design falls much more in line with typical Bentley DNA and is a far bit more attractive on so many levels. Sure, it is built on the Volkswagen group MLB architecture, which serves as the basis for the Audi Q7 and A8, so it is starting naturally with some good bones. From there, Bentley designers took over to impart its distinctive British-ness to the vehicle. The jury is still out on the rear haunches, but overall we would say the Bentayga is really quite handsome in a Porsche Cayenne sort of way.
“Biggest, baddest, most luxurious. Let us count the ways.”
According to Bentley officials, the Bentayga is the fastest, most powerful, most luxurious of SUVs. In other words, it is truly the Bentley of SUVs. Using a totally new version of the Bentley signature W12 engine, it now sports 600 horsepower and 664 lb-ft of torque.
That’s good for 0 to 60 times of four seconds, and a terminal velocity of 187 mph. That’s not too shabby for a vehicle that tips the scales at 5,379 pounds. As we were reminded by the Bentley Boys (and Girl), these are numbers more commonly associated with a two-door sports car, rather than a sport utility vehicle. But this is not just any sport ute.
Performance is nothing without the control. To that end, this newest Bentley rides on a suspension comprised of a four-link double wishbone kit in front, and the optional, and industry-first, 48-volt electric active anti-roll control system. It gives the ultimate comfort when you want it, with each wheel acting independently for the most comfortable ride.
When you are on the track you switch to sport mode for a much more engaging ride where the Bentayga feels planted and firmly set up for a flat go-round without wallowing or God forbid, any side-to-side “head-toss.” At the rear is a trapezoidal multilink kit also with the optional 48-volt electric active anti-roll bar.
Ride height and comfort can be adjusted with a center console-mounted dial that switches the suspension from Bentley, Sport, and Comfort options. They are joined by settings for snow, grass, desert, off-roading, etc. By changing the dial, the characteristics of the entire vehicle changes. Various ride heights are available to ease vehicle loading, or when off-roading or other types of terrain come into play.
⌖
Speaking of off-roading, this Bentley is proficient in off-the-pavement excursions too, with over a million miles of testing under its belt. Bentley drivers and engineers studied the Bentayga in Antarctica, as well as on the sand dunes in Dubai. Bentley claims a very balanced performance both on and off-road.
Sadly, though, and Bentley admits this from the start, most of the Bentaygas sold will never be subjected to such rigors, but it’s certainly reassuring to know the capabilities are there. In the words of a Bentley official, if a customer wanted to, the car could do it. Well, we wanted to and found a steep descent path leading from the helipads at Lime Rock Raceway, in Lime Rock Connecticut. Moving over the edge in hill descent mode found us creeping warily downward with nary a misstep, creak or groan while working our way to the flatlands.
Good looks are expensive.
Bentley customers are a demanding sort. Some may even want to customize the Bentayga to their particular taste, but fear not, as Bentley design consultants are available to protect you from yourself. To those buyers, appearance is everything, and as a result, the Bentayga’s proportions needed to be right.
The car, er, truck, er SUV, features a very long front hood, er bonnet, with a very short overhang. Conversely, the rear has a very long overhang and a very short rear window. The car’s wheelbase is 117.9-inches long, which, as an aside, lends itself to plenty of rear seat legroom. The visual dynamics make for a well-planted look while on the road.
“All Bentaygas are equipped with a full panorama sunroof.”
This Bentley’s front clip (comprised of the hood, grill and front fenders) is SuperFormed to avoid the use of multiple pieces of sheetmetal. This technology super-heats a single piece of metal that is blasted with very hot air to help the metal presses achieve the actual desired designs.
The hood dominates with its sharp creases while the fenders flow seamlessly into a bold powerline. That line, which suggests motion and strength, runs to the signature Bentley “haunches” (other brands call them knees) as seen in the rear fenders.
Twin LED headlights look as though they are floating in the air. Details include Bentley logos within the headlight housings and “Bs” in the taillights. So Bentley-ish, even the headlight washers are hidden beneath the running light housings that appear outboard of the main headlamps. The metal matrix radiator grille returns and in the case of some of our samplers was equipped with an added cost chrome lower grille.
From the side, the rear fender creases are more pronounced. Buyers can select the wheels of their choice, ranging from base 20-inchers, which are more suited to off-roading, while 21- and 22-inch options exist for on-road cruising. Available in painted, polished and dark tinted, you can order them to suit your inner-gangster.
The inside line.
Bentleys are known for their exquisite use of leather, veneer, and electronics that instantly let you know you are in a car that more resembles an event than a conveyance. Design for the interior starts with the Dashboard and moves rearward. There is enough wood veneer throughout the cabin to panel the Vanderbilt Family Library.
The front seats are throne-like in their ability to cool, massage and coddle their occupants, and feature a wood veneered central console with every conceivable control on it. In the rear, there are four and five seat configurations that can be covered with a variety of hides, stitching options, colors and textures to truly make this Bentayga your own.
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The available four-seat model offers more of an executive feel with better adjustability and its own central console. There will be an available refrigerator when the Bentayga goes on sale in the States.
The second rows of seats in our test vehicles were equipped with available twin 10-inch (android-based) tablets, which are part of the rear entertainment system. Removable, they can be used to type an email or a letter while you are being driven to work, and once you have arrived, you can remove the tablet and take it with you inside where you can continue the letter. In car 4G WiFi allows video streaming from the Interweb.
Bentley does not dabble in mere pedestrianism. Keeping that in mind, your Bentayga will come equipped with a 700-watt, 12-speaker Bentley Signature audio system. It this is not to your liking, you can swap it out for a 22-speaker, 1950-watt Naim Audio system mated to a 300-watt subwoofer in the boot. Apple CarPlay is standard.
The rear cargo area is standard enough, if there is such a thing in Bentley-speak, but can be equipped with an optional “Event Seat,” which customers requested as part of the Bentley feature content. Company officials found that customers did manage active lifestyles that included tailgating and spectating from the rear hatch, so Bentley devised a leather-covered bench seat that owners could sit and enjoy the polo matches whilst sipping a Pimms Cup cocktail. When not needed as a seat, it can be folded and used as a luggage divider. But wait, there’s more: Also on offer is the Bentley Picnic specification, which for $28,000 will equip you with a champagne cooler, storage for your flutes and a sideboard for you fine china and silverware.
Wheeling it.
With 600 horses all trying to have their way, acceleration is neck snapping. Literally. Still it is easy to control with virtually no torque steer, as it bangs through the eight-speed gearbox. Equipped with fulltime all-wheel-drive, the Bentayga seems to remain well-planted regardless of where we placed it on the course at the legendary Lime Rock raceway in Lime Rock, Connecticut.
“Switching to sport mode takes a bit of the softness out of the ride, but honestly, it’s where we like to be.”
Offering a more connected driving feel, it allows us to really have a sense of what this cat is doing, and to our seat of the pants feel, would be perfectly comfortable for most around town driving situations.
Driving on a slalom course we experienced the Bentayga’s industry first 48-volt active roll control system. Accelerating from a standing start to nearly 70 mph, we then slammed on the brakes to incur the full wrath of the ABS system, and then managed to do a lane change all the while not feeling the tiniest bit of wallow while avoiding cones that represented cars and pedestrians. We think it was a great execution of a necessary safety tool.
The full ride.
The Bentayga is head and shoulders above any other SUV we have driven. Everyone laughed when Bentley began shopping its SUV concept around. Critics scoffed at the mere idea that Bentley test these waters. Well, yes, they did that, and with extremely posh results, we might add.
As the old saying goes, he or she who laughs last, laughs loudest with this Bentley of SUVs.
2016 BENTLEY Bentayga W12 review
When Bentley first started shopping their idea for an SUV around, the great unwashed scoffed at such a plan. The Bentley EXP 9 F concept was first shown at the 2012 Geneva Motor Show, and gathered um, tepid response at best, owing to its rather upright and boxy design. In fact, its original profile pronounced more like a vintage ambulance or hearse.
Back to the drawing board.
Honestly, we agreed. The new design falls much more in line with typical Bentley DNA and is a far bit more attractive on so many levels. Sure, it is built on the Volkswagen group MLB architecture, which serves as the basis for the Audi Q7 and A8, so it is starting naturally with some good bones. From there, Bentley designers took over to impart its distinctive British-ness to the vehicle. The jury is still out on the rear haunches, but overall we would say the Bentayga is really quite handsome in a Porsche Cayenne sort of way.
“Biggest, baddest, most luxurious. Let us count the ways.”
According to Bentley officials, the Bentayga is the fastest, most powerful, most luxurious of SUVs. In other words, it is truly the Bentley of SUVs. Using a totally new version of the Bentley signature W12 engine, it now sports 600 horsepower and 664 lb-ft of torque.
That’s good for 0 to 60 times of four seconds, and a terminal velocity of 187 mph. That’s not too shabby for a vehicle that tips the scales at 5,379 pounds. As we were reminded by the Bentley Boys (and Girl), these are numbers more commonly associated with a two-door sports car, rather than a sport utility vehicle. But this is not just any sport ute.
Performance is nothing without the control. To that end, this newest Bentley rides on a suspension comprised of a four-link double wishbone kit in front, and the optional, and industry-first, 48-volt electric active anti-roll control system. It gives the ultimate comfort when you want it, with each wheel acting independently for the most comfortable ride.
When you are on the track you switch to sport mode for a much more engaging ride where the Bentayga feels planted and firmly set up for a flat go-round without wallowing or God forbid, any side-to-side “head-toss.” At the rear is a trapezoidal multilink kit also with the optional 48-volt electric active anti-roll bar.
Ride height and comfort can be adjusted with a center console-mounted dial that switches the suspension from Bentley, Sport, and Comfort options. They are joined by settings for snow, grass, desert, off-roading, etc. By changing the dial, the characteristics of the entire vehicle changes. Various ride heights are available to ease vehicle loading, or when off-roading or other types of terrain come into play.
Speaking of off-roading, this Bentley is proficient in off-the-pavement excursions too, with over a million miles of testing under its belt. Bentley drivers and engineers studied the Bentayga in Antarctica, as well as on the sand dunes in Dubai. Bentley claims a very balanced performance both on and off-road.
Sadly, though, and Bentley admits this from the start, most of the Bentaygas sold will never be subjected to such rigors, but it’s certainly reassuring to know the capabilities are there. In the words of a Bentley official, if a customer wanted to, the car could do it. Well, we wanted to and found a steep descent path leading from the helipads at Lime Rock Raceway, in Lime Rock Connecticut. Moving over the edge in hill descent mode found us creeping warily downward with nary a misstep, creak or groan while working our way to the flatlands.
Good looks are expensive.
Bentley customers are a demanding sort. Some may even want to customize the Bentayga to their particular taste, but fear not, as Bentley design consultants are available to protect you from yourself. To those buyers, appearance is everything, and as a result, the Bentayga’s proportions needed to be right.
The car, er, truck, er SUV, features a very long front hood, er bonnet, with a very short overhang. Conversely, the rear has a very long overhang and a very short rear window. The car’s wheelbase is 117.9-inches long, which, as an aside, lends itself to plenty of rear seat legroom. The visual dynamics make for a well-planted look while on the road.
“All Bentaygas are equipped with a full panorama sunroof.”
This Bentley’s front clip (comprised of the hood, grill and front fenders) is SuperFormed to avoid the use of multiple pieces of sheetmetal. This technology super-heats a single piece of metal that is blasted with very hot air to help the metal presses achieve the actual desired designs.
The hood dominates with its sharp creases while the fenders flow seamlessly into a bold powerline. That line, which suggests motion and strength, runs to the signature Bentley “haunches” (other brands call them knees) as seen in the rear fenders.
Twin LED headlights look as though they are floating in the air. Details include Bentley logos within the headlight housings and “Bs” in the taillights. So Bentley-ish, even the headlight washers are hidden beneath the running light housings that appear outboard of the main headlamps. The metal matrix radiator grille returns and in the case of some of our samplers was equipped with an added cost chrome lower grille.
From the side, the rear fender creases are more pronounced. Buyers can select the wheels of their choice, ranging from base 20-inchers, which are more suited to off-roading, while 21- and 22-inch options exist for on-road cruising. Available in painted, polished and dark tinted, you can order them to suit your inner-gangster.
The inside line.
Bentleys are known for their exquisite use of leather, veneer, and electronics that instantly let you know you are in a car that more resembles an event than a conveyance. Design for the interior starts with the Dashboard and moves rearward. There is enough wood veneer throughout the cabin to panel the Vanderbilt Family Library.
The front seats are throne-like in their ability to cool, massage and coddle their occupants, and feature a wood veneered central console with every conceivable control on it. In the rear, there are four and five seat configurations that can be covered with a variety of hides, stitching options, colors and textures to truly make this Bentayga your own.
The available four-seat model offers more of an executive feel with better adjustability and its own central console. There will be an available refrigerator when the Bentayga goes on sale in the States.
The second rows of seats in our test vehicles were equipped with available twin 10-inch (android-based) tablets, which are part of the rear entertainment system. Removable, they can be used to type an email or a letter while you are being driven to work, and once you have arrived, you can remove the tablet and take it with you inside where you can continue the letter. In car 4G WiFi allows video streaming from the Interweb.
Bentley does not dabble in mere pedestrianism. Keeping that in mind, your Bentayga will come equipped with a 700-watt, 12-speaker Bentley Signature audio system. It this is not to your liking, you can swap it out for a 22-speaker, 1950-watt Naim Audio system mated to a 300-watt subwoofer in the boot. Apple CarPlay is standard.
The rear cargo area is standard enough, if there is such a thing in Bentley-speak, but can be equipped with an optional “Event Seat,” which customers requested as part of the Bentley feature content. Company officials found that customers did manage active lifestyles that included tailgating and spectating from the rear hatch, so Bentley devised a leather-covered bench seat that owners could sit and enjoy the polo matches whilst sipping a Pimms Cup cocktail. When not needed as a seat, it can be folded and used as a luggage divider. But wait, there’s more: Also on offer is the Bentley Picnic specification, which for $28,000 will equip you with a champagne cooler, storage for your flutes and a sideboard for you fine china and silverware.
Wheeling it.
With 600 horses all trying to have their way, acceleration is neck snapping. Literally. Still it is easy to control with virtually no torque steer, as it bangs through the eight-speed gearbox. Equipped with fulltime all-wheel-drive, the Bentayga seems to remain well-planted regardless of where we placed it on the course at the legendary Lime Rock raceway in Lime Rock, Connecticut.
“Switching to sport mode takes a bit of the softness out of the ride, but honestly, it’s where we like to be.”
Offering a more connected driving feel, it allows us to really have a sense of what this cat is doing, and to our seat of the pants feel, would be perfectly comfortable for most around town driving situations.
Driving on a slalom course we experienced the Bentayga’s industry first 48-volt active roll control system. Accelerating from a standing start to nearly 70 mph, we then slammed on the brakes to incur the full wrath of the ABS system, and then managed to do a lane change all the while not feeling the tiniest bit of wallow while avoiding cones that represented cars and pedestrians. We think it was a great execution of a necessary safety tool.
The full ride.
The Bentayga is head and shoulders above any other SUV we have driven. Everyone laughed when Bentley began shopping its SUV concept around. Critics scoffed at the mere idea that Bentley test these waters. Well, yes, they did that, and with extremely posh results, we might add.
As the old saying goes, he or she who laughs last, laughs loudest with this Bentley of SUVs.
2016 BENTLEY Bentayga W12 review
ThroughandThrough
Kraftkurve King
First Drive: 2017 Bentley Bentayga
By Seyth Miersma, Executive Editor
A $200,000 defiance of gravity and expectation.
– Washington, Connecticut
Some days I drive a Camry. The life of a professional automotive journalist is filled with driving experiences, as you guess. And if I’m being true to the market I intend to cover, that means more miles logged behind the wheels of compact sedans, small crossovers, and pickup trucks as it does adrenaline-fueled apexes on windy, cliffside roads kissed by ocean air. For car nerds like me, all cars, basic to brash, are interesting subjects.
That said, some days I drive a Bentley. And not just any Bentley, but one with 600 horsepower. And not just any 600-hp Bentley, but the company’s first SUV. And not just any 600-hp Bentley SUV driving, but driving on a racetrack tucked in the money-green hills of the winding Connecticut countryside. Those are good days, too.
Truth be told, I didn’t arrive in New England particularly well disposed to like the Bentley Bentayga. My reaction to the development and deployment of the utility vehicle was typically grouchy, with the fact of the vehicle’s ostentatious styling not much improving my mood.
- The strong haunch over the rear wheel successfully conveys the power available.
Designing an attractive SUV is a tough task, and doing so with the requirements of Bentley’s world-famous, brick-flat, chrome-slathered corporate face makes it harder still. In person, the height of the front end combined with the prominent grille looks unsettling to me – as if, despite the short front overhang, it might nose over, unprovoked, in the parking lot. The view is altogether more pleasing when it comes to the Bentayga’s strong profile and muscular rear views. Here, the strong haunch over the rear wheel successfully conveys the power available, and the more conventional silhouette is pleasing to apprehend.
Perhaps saving the more attractive view for the backside is by design: the tanky vehicle is certainly quick enough that most other drivers will see it pulling away.
I may have gotten behind the wheel of Bentley’s first-ever SUV feeling somewhat sulky about the very idea, but I was quickly liberated from my misconceptions. I’d driven to our Connecticut staging area from New York in a Bentley Flying Spur, and it took all of about 90 seconds in the Bentayga to realize how much more refined it was than that sedan relation.
- Even an iPhone speaker could make this space sound like a concert hall.
From the silky hiss-click of the soft-close door to the ignition and then prolonged abuse of the masterful biturbo, 6.0-liter W12 engine, the Bentayga is a study in hushed and rapid travel. Wind and tire noise have been all but banished from the cabin, and any crackle from the twin, ovoid tailpipes is allowed in only as you dictate with your right foot. When I so chose, Bentayga was ready with an ungentlemanly level of acceleration from a stop – the 4.0-second 0-60 figure hardly does the experience justice – and a randy exhaust note. But when I leveled off the throttle the silence was so complete that the notion of opting into the 22-speaker Naim stereo system seemed preposterous. Even an iPhone speaker could make this space sound like a concert hall.
The collaboration of that noise isolation with Bentley’s phenomenal work on ride control and quality is what makes Bentayga feel very special, though. I improvised a drive route through the hilly country that surrounds Lime Rock Park, finding road surfaces almost as varied as those I travel every day in Michigan. And on high crowned, cracked, pitted back roads, Bentayga offered a filtered and sinuous experience, as if there were a layer of crushed velvet between tire and paving. That’s no mean feat on 21-inch wheels and rubber band-sidewalled tires.
Bentley is rightly proud of its world’s-first 48-volt electric anti-roll bars, so much so that it rented outt a track to show how stiff and stable the large SUV feels under my manhandling. But the Bentley Dynamic Ride seems far more impressive to me on a rapid drive over some twisting public roads, where it effectively masks the two-and-a-half-ton curb weight amidst some hot cornering. Overall there’s a fluid, natural, neutral experience when driving aggressively that’s not only impressive for an SUV, it’s impressive for a Bentley. And that’s kind of the point.
- This is an SUV that is fast and unflappable in 99-percentile use cases, with a little capacity left over around the extreme edges of driving situations.
I was impressed that the Bentayga didn’t wallow around Lime Rock, even when driven as few owners will frequently choose. And, though I didn’t have any more off-road experience than a well-manicured lawn and a bit of gravel driveway, I’ll give the benefit of the doubt that Bentley’s claims of proficiency are true – I’m certain the sand mode has been adequately vetted for inevitable oil-rich buyers. The point is this is an SUV that is fast and unflappable in 99-percentile use cases, with a little capacity left over around the extreme edges of driving situations.
There are two areas that define the SUV in those most-case scenarios: the mighty engine and the impeccable interior. As to the first, well, it hardly helps to have a vehicle that’s composed if it doesn’t also develop a bit of speed. With 600 horsepower and 664 pound-feet of torque developed from six, twin-turbocharged liters, pace isn’t an issue. Bentayga does the “scared cat” acceleration quite well, but it also allows for truly heroic spates of acceleration from rolling starts. At one point I found myself stacked up behind about a dozen slow-moving Yankees on a two-lane road, and it was only my sense of decorum that kept me from blitzing the line in a rush of power and flash of Azure Purple paint. I could’ve made it...
The W12’s thrust is managed by an eight-speed automatic that does a great job of keeping quiet and out of the way. There are paddle shifters – thankfully not the preciously positioned stalks from the Spur – but the sport mode programming is all that’s needed for quick kick downs. Manual mode feels like something for lesser vehicles.
- Forget for a moment that nearly every option comes at the cost of a used Civic, and enjoy the decadence.
Behind the tiller the big motor did a fine job keeping me alert and attentive to the fast-passing roadway, but every other seat in the house is fine to fall asleep in. Bentley is perhaps challenged only by Rolls-Royce in jaw-drop factor for its cabins, and the Bentayga doesn’t disappoint here. Wearing the optional four-seat configuration; rear seat entertainment package; heat, cooling, and massage for your backs and bottoms; and every manner of wood, leather, metal and good-feeling surface, this is truly a palace on wheels. Forget for a moment that nearly every option comes at the cost of a used Civic, and enjoy the decadence. There’s a reason why rich people love handmade things, as the elegance and sturdiness of craftsmanship shows in this lush environment.
An environment ripe for customization, the Bentayga’s $229,100 starting price is merely a good start. If you’ve read anything about this SUV to date, chances are good it revolved around the salacious price of the optional Mulliner Tourbillon by Breitling. The optional clock – which wasn’t on hand for me to stealinvestigate – runs north of $150,000. That’s a dash clock for right around the same price as one of Bentley’s quasi-competitors, the Porsche Cayenne Turbo S. Slightly less are the optional Event Seat and picnic boxes. The seat is a stowable, leather-bound ode to high-end tailgating, and asks more than $3,000 for the pleasure. The picnicking gear includes cut crystal, a full set of silver and china for serving, and a very downy looking Bentley blanket – yours for a mere twenty large... and some change.
- The Bentayga hails a new era for the company and fabulous new way for the motoring elite to hit the road.
At those prices – my tester had $1,980 worth of contrast stitching – it’s easy to poke fun at the ways in which wealthy folk part with their money. But the truth is every square-inch of the car feels crafted, not assembled, and there’s a cost associated with that richness and quality that sometimes boggles the minds of we commoners. Some days I may drive a Camry, but I don’t mind kicking it with a one-percenter options list occasionally, either.
The part of me that reveres tradition and desires that only sports cars be fast can’t stand that Bentayga exists. But that part of me is hardly worth listening to after actually driving the thing, perhaps the best and most complete Bentley experience one can now buy. Fast, rare, and impeccably finished, the Bentayga hails a new era for the company and fabulous new way for the motoring elite to hit the road.
First Drive: 2017 Bentley Bentayga
By Seyth Miersma, Executive Editor
A $200,000 defiance of gravity and expectation.
– Washington, Connecticut
Some days I drive a Camry. The life of a professional automotive journalist is filled with driving experiences, as you guess. And if I’m being true to the market I intend to cover, that means more miles logged behind the wheels of compact sedans, small crossovers, and pickup trucks as it does adrenaline-fueled apexes on windy, cliffside roads kissed by ocean air. For car nerds like me, all cars, basic to brash, are interesting subjects.
That said, some days I drive a Bentley. And not just any Bentley, but one with 600 horsepower. And not just any 600-hp Bentley, but the company’s first SUV. And not just any 600-hp Bentley SUV driving, but driving on a racetrack tucked in the money-green hills of the winding Connecticut countryside. Those are good days, too.
Truth be told, I didn’t arrive in New England particularly well disposed to like the Bentley Bentayga. My reaction to the development and deployment of the utility vehicle was typically grouchy, with the fact of the vehicle’s ostentatious styling not much improving my mood.
- The strong haunch over the rear wheel successfully conveys the power available.
Designing an attractive SUV is a tough task, and doing so with the requirements of Bentley’s world-famous, brick-flat, chrome-slathered corporate face makes it harder still. In person, the height of the front end combined with the prominent grille looks unsettling to me – as if, despite the short front overhang, it might nose over, unprovoked, in the parking lot. The view is altogether more pleasing when it comes to the Bentayga’s strong profile and muscular rear views. Here, the strong haunch over the rear wheel successfully conveys the power available, and the more conventional silhouette is pleasing to apprehend.
Perhaps saving the more attractive view for the backside is by design: the tanky vehicle is certainly quick enough that most other drivers will see it pulling away.
I may have gotten behind the wheel of Bentley’s first-ever SUV feeling somewhat sulky about the very idea, but I was quickly liberated from my misconceptions. I’d driven to our Connecticut staging area from New York in a Bentley Flying Spur, and it took all of about 90 seconds in the Bentayga to realize how much more refined it was than that sedan relation.
- Even an iPhone speaker could make this space sound like a concert hall.
From the silky hiss-click of the soft-close door to the ignition and then prolonged abuse of the masterful biturbo, 6.0-liter W12 engine, the Bentayga is a study in hushed and rapid travel. Wind and tire noise have been all but banished from the cabin, and any crackle from the twin, ovoid tailpipes is allowed in only as you dictate with your right foot. When I so chose, Bentayga was ready with an ungentlemanly level of acceleration from a stop – the 4.0-second 0-60 figure hardly does the experience justice – and a randy exhaust note. But when I leveled off the throttle the silence was so complete that the notion of opting into the 22-speaker Naim stereo system seemed preposterous. Even an iPhone speaker could make this space sound like a concert hall.
The collaboration of that noise isolation with Bentley’s phenomenal work on ride control and quality is what makes Bentayga feel very special, though. I improvised a drive route through the hilly country that surrounds Lime Rock Park, finding road surfaces almost as varied as those I travel every day in Michigan. And on high crowned, cracked, pitted back roads, Bentayga offered a filtered and sinuous experience, as if there were a layer of crushed velvet between tire and paving. That’s no mean feat on 21-inch wheels and rubber band-sidewalled tires.
Bentley is rightly proud of its world’s-first 48-volt electric anti-roll bars, so much so that it rented outt a track to show how stiff and stable the large SUV feels under my manhandling. But the Bentley Dynamic Ride seems far more impressive to me on a rapid drive over some twisting public roads, where it effectively masks the two-and-a-half-ton curb weight amidst some hot cornering. Overall there’s a fluid, natural, neutral experience when driving aggressively that’s not only impressive for an SUV, it’s impressive for a Bentley. And that’s kind of the point.
- This is an SUV that is fast and unflappable in 99-percentile use cases, with a little capacity left over around the extreme edges of driving situations.
I was impressed that the Bentayga didn’t wallow around Lime Rock, even when driven as few owners will frequently choose. And, though I didn’t have any more off-road experience than a well-manicured lawn and a bit of gravel driveway, I’ll give the benefit of the doubt that Bentley’s claims of proficiency are true – I’m certain the sand mode has been adequately vetted for inevitable oil-rich buyers. The point is this is an SUV that is fast and unflappable in 99-percentile use cases, with a little capacity left over around the extreme edges of driving situations.
There are two areas that define the SUV in those most-case scenarios: the mighty engine and the impeccable interior. As to the first, well, it hardly helps to have a vehicle that’s composed if it doesn’t also develop a bit of speed. With 600 horsepower and 664 pound-feet of torque developed from six, twin-turbocharged liters, pace isn’t an issue. Bentayga does the “scared cat” acceleration quite well, but it also allows for truly heroic spates of acceleration from rolling starts. At one point I found myself stacked up behind about a dozen slow-moving Yankees on a two-lane road, and it was only my sense of decorum that kept me from blitzing the line in a rush of power and flash of Azure Purple paint. I could’ve made it...
The W12’s thrust is managed by an eight-speed automatic that does a great job of keeping quiet and out of the way. There are paddle shifters – thankfully not the preciously positioned stalks from the Spur – but the sport mode programming is all that’s needed for quick kick downs. Manual mode feels like something for lesser vehicles.
- Forget for a moment that nearly every option comes at the cost of a used Civic, and enjoy the decadence.
Behind the tiller the big motor did a fine job keeping me alert and attentive to the fast-passing roadway, but every other seat in the house is fine to fall asleep in. Bentley is perhaps challenged only by Rolls-Royce in jaw-drop factor for its cabins, and the Bentayga doesn’t disappoint here. Wearing the optional four-seat configuration; rear seat entertainment package; heat, cooling, and massage for your backs and bottoms; and every manner of wood, leather, metal and good-feeling surface, this is truly a palace on wheels. Forget for a moment that nearly every option comes at the cost of a used Civic, and enjoy the decadence. There’s a reason why rich people love handmade things, as the elegance and sturdiness of craftsmanship shows in this lush environment.
An environment ripe for customization, the Bentayga’s $229,100 starting price is merely a good start. If you’ve read anything about this SUV to date, chances are good it revolved around the salacious price of the optional Mulliner Tourbillon by Breitling. The optional clock – which wasn’t on hand for me to stealinvestigate – runs north of $150,000. That’s a dash clock for right around the same price as one of Bentley’s quasi-competitors, the Porsche Cayenne Turbo S. Slightly less are the optional Event Seat and picnic boxes. The seat is a stowable, leather-bound ode to high-end tailgating, and asks more than $3,000 for the pleasure. The picnicking gear includes cut crystal, a full set of silver and china for serving, and a very downy looking Bentley blanket – yours for a mere twenty large... and some change.
- The Bentayga hails a new era for the company and fabulous new way for the motoring elite to hit the road.
At those prices – my tester had $1,980 worth of contrast stitching – it’s easy to poke fun at the ways in which wealthy folk part with their money. But the truth is every square-inch of the car feels crafted, not assembled, and there’s a cost associated with that richness and quality that sometimes boggles the minds of we commoners. Some days I may drive a Camry, but I don’t mind kicking it with a one-percenter options list occasionally, either.
The part of me that reveres tradition and desires that only sports cars be fast can’t stand that Bentayga exists. But that part of me is hardly worth listening to after actually driving the thing, perhaps the best and most complete Bentley experience one can now buy. Fast, rare, and impeccably finished, the Bentayga hails a new era for the company and fabulous new way for the motoring elite to hit the road.
First Drive: 2017 Bentley Bentayga
TopspeedPT
Track Technician
Centurion
Apex Apex Predator
It’s funny how the rear seats can’t be folded at the push of a button. Let’s not kid ourselves though, no owner of the car will be using the car for hauling bags or soil or helping a friend move house.
sako97
Autotechnik Ace
May I ask why?
JBattan
Blinker Baron
And sure enough, two years later I have finally purchased a 2017 Bentayga. Love it!
sako97
Autotechnik Ace
Nice. What color?
JBattan
Blinker Baron
It’s solid white over black leather, with the full ($18,000!) carbon fiber exterior trim and ($8,000!) Mulliner gloss black wheels. Got it for half its original $290K price after a mere 14K miles. That’s serious depreciation.
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Bentley
Bentley Motors Limited is a British designer, manufacturer,
and marketer of luxury cars and SUVs. Headquartered in Crewe,
England, the company was founded by W. O. Bentley (1888-1971)
in 1919 in Cricklewood, North London, and became widely known
for winning the 24 Hours of Le Mans in 1924, 1927, 1928, 1929
and 1930. Bentley has been a subsidiary of the Volkswagen Group
since 1998 and consolidated under VW's premium brand arm Audi
in 2022.
Official website: Bentley Motors
Official website: Bentley Motors
