But you won’t believe by how much.
Despite its ultra high-end positioning, the announcement today from Bentley is rather unbecoming and petty. You see, they’ve come about with something called the Bentley Bentayga Speed which, once you’ve come to terms with the reality of a super-fast Bentley SUV, isn’t all too bad. No, we take issue with its biggest claim, that it is the “world’s fastest SUV.”
We’re rubbed the wrong way by that claim because the previous ‘fastest SUV’ was the Lamborghini Urus (with which it shares a platform), and the Italian’s only been beaten by the Brit by a measly 1km/h (Bentayga Speed tops out at 306km/h, Lamborghini Urus at 305km/h).
That’s not an engineering feat, that’s just moving the electronic leash up a touch.
What’s different though is what gets it to that speed and how it does so. While the Urus is motivated by a V8, the Bentayga uses a W12 with 467kW and 900Nm. Despite that, the Urus hits 100km/h in 3.6-seconds while the Bentayga Speed does it in a (paltry?) 3.9-seconds. But again, higher top speed. Just.
A faster model doesn’t count for anything unless it looks it though, and Bentley’s done what’s needed to mark out the Bentayga Speed from its not-Speed brethren. The chrome details are now all darker than usual, there are 22-inch wheels as standard, and there’s a big rear spoiler. The cabin also gets Alcantara as standard but, as Bentley owners don’t much like the stuff, leather can be optioned on at no additional cost.
The revised suspension & retuned Dynamic Ride system are standard, but there are carbon-ceramic brakes that will cost you quite a bit more should you want them. Opting for them does at least let you save some 20kg of weight, while still offering 6,000Nm of stopping power and a heat tolerance of up to 1,000ºC.
Want one? Well we’re going to state now that the Bentley Bentayga Speed will most definitely be making it to Australia, but we don’t want to talk about the price for fear of uncontrollable sobbing.
This piece must end here, as this writer must now find a willing buyer for his liver.
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