Bentley Bentayga 2021 Long Term Review Car News

Why we are running it: Assess the depth and above all the breadth of capabilities of the now established leader of the luxury SUV cohort

Month 3 – Month 2 – Month 1 – Specifications

Life with a Bentley Bentayga: month 3

Time to press the fast forward button as hard as you can and try V8 life beyond 150 mph – May 12, 2021

There we were, about to send our Bentley Bentayga V8 to a new owner, when it suddenly struck me that for all the power and sophistication under that long hood and behind that expansive grille, I never had it. driving at the limit of its acceleration. I had never obeyed that primary impulse to press and hold your accelerator on the ground until we were doing at least two and a half miles per minute.

That may not seem like a priority when we’re talking about a 542-horsepower SUV that can get past distracting traffic without the driver needing to run their 4.0-liter twin-turbo V8 gasoline engine at more than half of its capacity. 7,000 rpm red line, but it becomes much more important when you remember that there is an even more powerful Bentayga W12 in the model lists, capable of delivering 68 additional horsepower and 100 additional lb-ft of torque. Does the performance of one cancel out the other? It is surely up to the careful tester to get the V8 running full blast, just to investigate any perceived performance deficits.

One of the perks of living in the lower Cotswolds is that you are never far from an airfield with a long runway, so with some persuasion from the local air traffic control authorities and a promise to monitor their radio closely. I was allowed to give our V8 all it had, four or five times.

Under normal circumstances, this engine is so simple it’s barely there. From the outside, you sometimes hear a typical low-revving V8 rumble, but when you’re behind the wheel, the car just slides. Give it everything, and hold it there, and the engine completely changes character.

On the one hand, the tacho needle flies directly at 7000 rpm, in first and second. On the other hand, what you thought was the most shy and quiet of the big motors becomes quite hoarse, emitting a roar, covered with a bark that you will hardly have heard before, as these sound effects are difficult to reproduce. at reasonable speeds on the public. road. But give it permission for a long, wide, unfettered track and the V8 is all too willing to announce, loud enough, its relationship to the V8 version of the Audi R8.

Of course, there is a huge and sustained acceleration. You sink into the plush seats for a long time, but everything remains beautifully stable. In your V8, you never spare a thought for the more pokier and more expensive W12 version. On our track day the tarmac was greasy but the noisy starts from the rest were made with no trace of wheel slip, thanks to a four-wheel drive system that has multiple levels of electronic traction maintenance built in. You go over 62 mph in 4.2 seconds (admittedly, conceding half a second to the W12) and, in neutral wind conditions, just over 10 seconds later, you’re doing 125 mph. There is no waiting – and there is certainly no wish for extra performance!

The Bentayga’s upper trio of eight gears contributes little to acceleration. You’re still fourth as you go over 100mph, and even at 150mph you still have a few cogs to go. However, the best ratios are vital for the effortlessly leggy Bentayga brand, which they are urged to deliver to almost all the time.