2017 Bentley Bentayga

The Bentley for those with the stamina to cross the Sahara.

That beguiling scent wafting through the harvest air is familiar: Oh, yeah, it’s the smell of money. Markets are roiling, inflation’s down, and the great recession is a shrinking speck in the rearview mirror. The wealthy have itchy wallets. They’re amenable to freshening their fleets and sharing a whiff of their good fortune with the world at large.

It’s the perfect time, then, for Bentley to expand its portfolio. On a mission to deliver the most power, exclusivity, and prestige ever seen in an SUV, Bentley’s new Bentayga will ensure that a sand dune never impedes a trip to the Mall of the Emirates. And where this Bentley ventures, others are sure to ­follow. Lifestyle-support vehicles from Lamborghini and Maserati will trail the Bentayga’s 2016 arrival, with competitors from Rolls-Royce and Aston Martin also more than probable.

Design

Bentleys have always been imposing, but the Bentayga towers over its surroundings in a way none has before. At 68.6 inches tall, it’s nearly nine inches loftier than any other Bentley. Ex­teri­or designer Sang Yup Lee had a vast screen on which to project Bentley’s “powerful, exquisite, and individual” power points.

The Bentayga is essentially Continental and Flying Spur sculpture retailored in big-and-tall size. A face dominated by wide eyes and hungry grilles signals the hoi polloi to step aside. Sweeping side creases and prominent rear haunches showcase wheels ranging from 20 to 22 inches in diameter. The roof arch and a hatch, angled more steeply than the windshield, express Bentayga’s bent for speed. And Lee’s painstaking attention to detail is evident in the body-colored running-lamp pupils concealing the headlamp washers, the subtle front-fender creases achievable only by hot stamping, and side vents accented with B logos. Exhaust outlets are large enough to serve a Greyhound bus.

Chassis

Erected on the VW Group’s MLB architecture shared with the Audi Q7 and the next Porsche Cayenne, the Bentayga rides on a 117.8-inch wheelbase and stretches 3.5 inches longer than the Q7, to 202.4. It has aluminum skin over bones formed from steel and aluminum. This is Bentley’s first use of aluminum castings in a structural role; they serve as nodes for anchoring the front air springs, rear suspension subframe, D-pillars, and front bumpers. Bentley claims this saved 500 pounds over all-steel construction, quoting a curb weight of 5340 pounds—700 pounds lighter than the flagship Mulsanne.
Air springs support a poised ride and four height settings. The steering is of the variable-ratio variety with electric assist. A 48-volt electric circuit adjusts the stiffness of the front and rear anti-roll bars. To aid off-road treks, the dash displays pitch, roll, wheel articulation, steering angle, altitude, and compass heading. Eight different driving modes cover all manner of on- and off-road contingencies, including wet grass.

Interior

Jaws reflexively drop upon entering the Bentayga’s inner sanctum. Designer Darren Day interpreted Bentley’s double-wing cockpit motif with due respect for handcrafted quality, functionality, and occupant comfort. Bright bezels less than one-sixteenth of an inch wide separate control panels from surrounding trim. Knob-surface knurling is finer than what you’ll find on a Rolex’s winding crown. More than a dozen hides are tanned, stitched, and quilted to a fare-thee-well to upholster the 22-way power-adjustable seats. And the wood shop at Crewe takes burled walnut from multiple locations around the globe, peeling, pressing, matching, sanding, lacquering, ­polishing, and wrapping it over the compound-curved dash.
The standard three-person rear bench splits and folds as usual, and an optional third row expands passenger capacity from five to seven. Alternatively, a four-seat configuration ditches both rearmost rows for two thrones similar to the front buckets, as well as a fixed rear partition. Ninety control modules operate the touch screen, head-up display, night vision, and comprehensive suite of driver-aid systems. Those who enjoy typing on the fly will want the twin-rear-seat setup’s optional integrated, removable tablets.

Engine

Bentley is proud to have been assigned assembly responsibility for the VW Group’s new 6.0-liter W-12. Variable intake- and exhaust-valve timing, direct and port fuel injection, and a pair of Bosch Mahle turbos hammer out 600 horsepower and 664 pound-feet of torque. The company claims a 4.0-second zero-to-60 sprint and a 187-mph top speed. To improve fuel efficiency, half the cylinders shut down when not needed.
Compared with a two-wide-by-six-long V-12, Bentley’s power cube is four cylinders wide and 3.5 cylinders long, a boon to underhood packaging. And the new-generation W-12 is 66 pounds lighter than its predecessor. Cramming a dozen cylinders, four camshafts, and 48 valves into this box is no mean feat. What stops other makers from using the exotic W engine layout is the long path the inner cylinders’ exhaust follows before escaping the heads. This transfers more than the normal amount of heat to the cooling system, diminishing fuel efficiency.
Bentley plans to manufacture only 3600 Bentaygas next year, one-third of which are slated for Americans with an open garage slot and at least $185,000 to blow. Asked where the newest Bentley will fit in the Volkswagen Group’s pecking order relative to Porsche’s 570-hp Cayenne Turbo S and the 2018 Lambor­ghini Urus, Bentley CEO Wolfgang Dürheimer stressed: “Bentayga will be the fastest, most luxurious, and most exclusive SUV—that’s its place. No other SUV will offer this unique combination.”