The 2025 Flying Spur Is the Good Bentley: First Drive Overview

At this very second, our photo voltaic system is hurtling via house at 450,000 miles per hour—a reality that’s equal elements fascinating and terrifying. But, even because the photo voltaic system flies at a price our tiny monkey brains can hardly comprehend, right here on Earth, we do not really feel a rattling factor.

You may expertise the same sensation within the new Bentley Flying Spur, a car almost as large as the Milky Approach itself. It certainly as hell does not really feel like I am shifting all that shortly via the Arizona desert, swaddled within the best leather-based whereas the entrance seat massages my rump. However, a short peek at the speedometer suggests any other case.

You’d hardly know the Flying Spur was quick simply by taking a look at it. The design barely modifications from this year to the final; Minor updates to the fascias and a few new 22-inch wheel choices preserve it recently, whereas two tiny “Pace” badges on both aspects of the entrance bumpers are the one indicator of this automobile’s overwhelming efficiency.

An extended, pretty hood hides the Flying Spur’s thruster: A brand new twin-turbocharged 4.0-liter V-8 plug-in hybrid. Bentley wrapped up manufacturing of its iconic W-12 earlier this year with the Bentayga, Continental GT, and now, Flying Spur, shifting to this plug-in-hybrid setup.

However fear not, fellow house vacationers, Bentley has made battery-assisted perfection right here. Due to some engineering assistance from Porsche, a single electrical motor embedded throughout the eight-speed dual-clutch transmission and a 25.9-kilowatt-hour (internet) battery pack assist the Flying Spur to 771 horsepower and 738 pound-feet of torque.

Even with 4 fewer cylinders, that is the most powerful Flying Spur the corporation has ever constructed. The engine develops extra torque than the earlier automobile at decreased engine speeds, increased peak torque, and better energy output all through the rev vary. With that additional oomph, it is half a second faster than the earlier automobile to sixty. And though it is now not able to 200 mph, the Flying Spur’s 177 mile-per-hour prime velocity continues to be loaded quickly sufficient.

Execs: Extraordinarily Fairly, Bonkers Quick, Exceptionally Lavish

Racing via the desert on this six-figure tremendous sedan, it is simple to succeed at unlawful speeds without attempting. This automobile has a lot of energy; Gobs of torque on the low-end because of that electrical motor and a wave of power atop the tach from the still-powerful-on-its-own V-8. Even once you’re barely touching the throttle, the powertrain feels prefer it’s continuously pulling you alongside.

What’s most spectacular, although, is how unbelievably easy it is. Carlos Santana and Rob Thomas would shed a tear. There is no lag when hammering the throttle and hardly a hiccup when the automobile switches from pure EV mode to hybrid. Even at excessive speeds, there is no in-fighting between battery energy and fuel—they’re an ideal duo (identical to Carlos and Rob).

The Flying Spur has a pure EV mode with 46 miles of vary on the beneficiant WLTP cycle in Europe (most likely nearer to 40 miles within the US) that works at speeds of as much as 87 miles per hour (or 75-percent throttle utility). Utilizing electrical energy to cruise on the freeway is simple, as long as you are mild on the throttle. When plugging into an 11.0-kilowatt charger, it takes less than three hours to replenish with electrons.

In case you choose no battery energy in any respect, choose Sport Maintain mode to make use of that V-8 completely. Even with 200 fewer horses on the faucet, the V-8 is potent sufficient to ship the Flying Spur down the street with actual velocity. It even sounds nice; A ravishing burble belts out of the again of the twin exhaust ideas. A chilly beginning on a crisp Arizona morning, there are clear shades of Sant’Agata Bolognese in its DNA.

Cons: No Extra W-12, It Will not Match In My Driveway

However, this automobile is not only a straight-line bomber. The Flying Spur handles fairly properly for a 5,833-pound land yacht. 4 fewer cylinders within the engine bay metasearch less mass over the nostril, whereas the battery shoved underneath the trunk ground provide some weight to the rear for improved steadiness. For the primary time, the Flying Spur has a slight rear bias (48.3 entrance, 51.7 rear).

That makes this automobile adept at carving via the pink rock-lined roads of Sedona. A brand new efficient eenergeticChassis with all-wheel drive, a digital limited-slip differential, and all-wheel steering assist shrink the 17.5-foot-long sedan across the driver. The steering is very responsive and there is not a touch of “floatiness;” It is a lot nicer to pedal onerous than any product Rolls-Royce at the moment places out.

The brand-new twin-valve dampers do wonders for the trip’s high quality. They’re virtually similar to those discovered on the Porsche Panamera, and funnily sufficient, much like these on the off-road-oriented Chevrolet Colorado ZR2 Bison. They handle compression and rebound independently of one another, which suggests a stiffer setup in Sport mode, but the identical signature luxurious trip high quality in Consolation. Even on the bumpiest street, the trip is elegant—there’s nary a pothole that upsets it.

Driving in any of the 4 seats is a lavish expertise, as you’d count on. Each throne comes with up-to-date Nappa leather-based that includes a singular “3D” diamond-quilted sample that provides higher perforation for heating and airflow. Truthfully, they don’t seem to be tremendous gentle (perhaps they want extra time to interrupt in), however, they’re excellently formed and have numerous choices to keep snug, together with a brand new computerized postural adjustment that may detect slouching and alter the seating place on the fly. Bentley says it’s going to forestall a “numb bum,” which it definitely did over just a few hours on desert roads.

Fashionable facilities embrace a 12.3-inch touchscreen within the heart stack that appears good and is simple to make use of. It has wi-fi Apple CarPlay and Android Auto compatibility, and flips into the dashboard with the press of a button, exposing a full-length, open-pore walnut sprint. Nifty. Passengers within the second row even have entry to a tiny pill that controls primary capabilities like seat controls, air-con, and the flexibility to cover or reveal the “Flying B” emblem on the nostril of the automobile. Why? As a result, it is enjoyable.

As you’d count on, shopping for a Bentley of this magnitude isn’t any small funding. The 2025 Flying Spur begins at $276,450 (with the $4,150 vacation spot charge included) and prices $330,540 after choices. You may need to pay additional for a premium audio system ($9,615), this stunning Neptune Blue metallic paint ($8,665), and the flowery folding show ($6,955)—amongst just a few different issues.

However the Flying Spur Pace one way or the other nonetheless seems like a deal, even at that worth. You may not get into the most recent Rolls-Royce Ghost for lower than $330,000, and even a comparable Mercedes-Maybach S-Class prices $205,000 earlier than you add on the actually great things. And albeit, neither one comes near the all-around excellence that the Flying Spur provides.

Even within the period of downsizing and electrification, Bentley (or, actually, the bigger Volkswagen Group) has developed an efficient powertrain that does not really feel like a downgrade to the beloved W-12. It is extra {powerful}, extra energetic, and within the ongoing battle to appease the effectivity overloads, barely much less consuming.

W-12 or not, the 2025 Flying Spur continues to be all the pieces a Bentley must be.