Bentley unveils the stylish new Bentayga

Bentley has announced details of the new Bentayga , the first car launched under Bentley’s Beyond 100 business plan, an initiative by the brand to become the world leader in sustainable luxury mobility. The announcement stems from the fact that Bentley celebrated its 100 years of existence in 2019, hence 2020 being ‘beyond’ the 100-year marker.

At a glance

The new Bentayga draws inspiration from the marque’s design language seen on the third-gen Continental GT and the all-new Flying Spur. Every panel at the front and rear of the car has been altered to give it a cleaner and more modern look, with extra care given to the fact that the car’s coefficients of drag or lift remain unaffected.

The larger, assertive matrix grille is now more upright, while the new elliptical LED matrix headlights – that include the signature Bentley design inspired by cut crystal glassware – are further apart, raising them by 30mm. Each matrix headlamp contains 82 powerful LEDs to improve functionality and road safety. They ingeniously allow the pool of light to be continuously shaped by automatically switching off certain LEDs to ‘box out’ other road users. The more aggressive front bumper emphasises the performance characteristics of the car. A unique feature is the heated, wet-arm windscreen wipers introduced for the first time, with 22 washer jets in each arm.

In profile, the new Bentayga looks unmistakably muscular. A new, longer vent is positioned above the sculpted power line on the side of the front wing, while the lower door mouldings are also completely new, alongside discreet V8 badging. The striking new 22-inch wheel design is available in two finishes, expanding the number of available wheel designs to five – all of which are unique to Bentley.

At the rear, the new Bentayga has undergone a major transformation, with a total redesign of the rear surfaces including a new full-width tailgate with new encapsulated lamps, while the licence plate has been moved down into the bumper for a cleaner appearance. Wide, split tailpipes leave no doubt that this is a powerful performance car. A 20 mm increase to the rear track width brings dynamic benefit and repositions the wheels in their arches to improve the car’s stance. The wheels themselves are a new design, unique to Bentayga.

Two new colours are also added to the already extensive Bentayga palette – Viridian, a dark shade of metallic green based on the colour of the EXP 10 Speed 6 concept car, and Patina – a luxury-focused mid-tone off-white.

The dynamic new looks are further accentuated with a breadth of individualisation possibilities, including the contemporary urban appeal of the Blackline Specification that replaces all exterior chrome with black versions.

Visibility and convenience are further aided by new wet arm windscreen wipers, which include an array of 22 heated washer jets in each arm. The system means no distracting spray and dramatically improves the cleaning of the glass.

New Bentayga continues to offer all the key features that made the original model such a hit, ranging from the practicality of a hands-free powered tailgate and refrigerated bottle cooler, to the safety-focused City Specification Pack and rear view camera.

Stepping into the cabin

Among the major changes to the Bentayga’s interior are new door trims and steering wheel, plus a redesigned centre fascia housing the latest-generation infotainment screen, enhancing the visual appeal and practicality of the class-leading Bentayga and sat within the famed Bentley ‘wings’ design ethos across the dashboard.

The central pair of traditional ‘bullseye’ centre vents have been replaced by a sculptured single vent with a flowing chrome bezel, that sits above the main infotainment screen and integrates the Breitling clock into its form. A long pocket along the side of the centre console carries smaller items, such as a mobile phone, while a wireless inductive phone charger with signal booster is situated directly in front of the gear lever.

Three versatile seating configurations are available in new Bentayga. Apart from the standard five-seat, an optional four-seat layout features two individual rear seats separated by a centre console. A three-row, seven-seat configuration offers the ultimate in practicality and flexibility.

The five-seat Bentayga benefits from an all-new seat frame, which doubles the travel of the rear-seat recline angle. All the seats now have a more sculpted shape, especially around the shoulder area. New foam and cover designs are standard, while Contrast Stitching and Hand Cross Stitching deliver extra design detail. Seat micro piping is also available for the first time on Bentayga. The five-seat configuration now also has the option of rear-seat ventilation, previously available only on the four-seat cabin.

Speaking of ventilation, onboard air ionisers emit negatively charged particles from the central air conditioning vents, which, Bentley claim, creates a static charge around pollutants such as dust or allergens in the air, causing them to stick to the nearest surface and out of the air the occupants breathe.

The four-seat Bentayga benefits from a 30mm increase in knee room in the upright seated position, with an improvement of almost 100mm in the reclined position, helping to make luxury travel even more comfortable.

A new quilting design is included in Mulliner Driving Specification cars, while customers can choose from eight sustainably-sourced veneers including two straight grained options new to Bentayga – Koa and Crown Cut Walnut.

Unique to new Bentayga, a stunning, dark tint diamond brushed aluminium finish trim is available as an option in a Bentley for the first time. Evoking the Bentley matrix grille design, this exquisite finish is produced via an intricate process of brushing the aluminium precisely, from multiple directions, to achieve a contemporary three-dimensional effect.

Cutting-edge Infotainment

The new Bentayga now features a bigger and brighter, high-resolution 10.9-inch touchscreen with an anti-reflection and anti-glare coating and an improved touch functionality, now spanning the entire width of the centre fascia for a more contemporary look.

Content in the primary window can be selected either via hard keys beneath the screen, or from the main menu screen. A customisable dashboard can also be set up to show three favourites, such as phone, navigation or media.

The advanced navigation system, with a three-dimensional building display, satellite maps, content in the driver’s next generation Head-Up Display, features free text, context-specific search entry, including an address or point of interest. The Head-Up Display can project traffic information, street and names and distance to destination too.

Besides the usual array of media sources, wireless Apple CarPlay is now standard in the new Bentayga (in addition to the previous standard wired system), along with Android Auto for the first time in a Bentley. With a corresponding phone plugged into one of the car’s USB-C sockets, the central infotainment screen mirrors the smartphone display.

The new Bentayga now has a fully digital driver’s information panel similar to the Continental GT and new Flying Spur. The fully display brings a contemporary look to the cockpit, with real-time lighting effects and elegant animations. The high-resolution screen can be viewed in either Classic or Expanded format. In Classic, the display shows the traditional two-dial design of speedometer and tachometer. In Expanded, the right dial is replaced with an area for maps and media information.

The latest release of the My Bentley in-car and remote connected car services are available through the New Bentayga. In-car services now being delivered through an embedded SIM, as with the latest Continental GT, meaning online services no longer require a data connection from a customer’s mobile device.

Essential features including real time traffic information and over-the-air map updates available to all customers in Bentley connected car markets. New connected features such as online music, green traffic light prediction, and local hazard information will become available depending on market.

Remote services - subject to regional availability - are accessible through the My Bentley app and are further improved, including the technology levels and range of features our customers now come to expect – from ‘find my car’ and ‘lock my car’, through to car status and statistics – including integration with other functions such as the park heater where fitted.

The new Bentayga features two levels of audio systems, with the 12-speaker Bentley Signature Audio system now fitted as standard, with the optional 20-speaker Naim for Bentley system delivering active bass speakers under both front seats and super-tweeters located in each A and B-pillar for higher frequencies. Further, the Naim for Bentley audio also offers eight listening modes, ranging from Digital Media to Classic.

Moving finally to the rear seats, and the occupants here enjoy a technology upgrade with a larger touchscreen remote control tablet, similar to the one in the new Flying Spur. The five-inch display shows more contemporary graphics and has extra processing power through an onboard quad-core processor and 1 GB of RAM. The unit can control a range of functions, from rear seat heating and massage, to the media system and navigation, to mood lighting and window blinds.

Under the hood

The new Bentayga stays mechanically unchanged from its predecessor, and is powered by Bentley’s proven 4.0-litre, 32-valve dual twin-scroll turbocharged V8 petrol engine mated to an eight-speed automatic gearbox. It produces an identical 542 bhp and 770 Nm, for a 4.4 second 0-100kmph time and a 290kmph top end.

Now, being predisposed towards luxury, the Bentayga now features an enhanced version of the Bentley Dynamic Ride, which counteracts lateral rolling forces when cornering and ensures maximum tyre contact. In the new Bentayga gets 20 mm track increase at the rear, reducing steering effort and improving response linearity.

The new Bentayga offers up to eight driving modes - four on and four off-road – courtesy the Bentley’s Drive Dynamics Mode and the optional All-Terrain Specification., allowing drivers to select the perfect dynamic set-up for any surface or road condition at the turn of a dial.

The Bentayga has been driven on every terrain imaginable across the planet – racing kite surfers on Danish beaches, crossing inhospitable deserts in Chile and Bolivia, trekking across Iceland, dune surfing in the Middle East, and setting a new SUV record at the Pikes Peak International Hillclimb.

To that end, there will also be a performance-focused Speed model of the Bentayga coming in later this year, powered by Bentley’s renowned 6.0-litre W12 TSI engine. It was this exact engine that rocketed the 2016 Bentayga Speed from 0 to 100kmph in 4 seconds and on to a top speed of 305 kmph, earning it the title of the fastest SUV in the world. That said, the new Bentayga will also be offered with a 3-litre turbocharged V6 petrol engine working in conjunction with an electric motor, making it the first true plug-in superluxury hybrid SUV.

Speaking on the evolution of the Bentayga, and the introduction of its 2020 iteration, Adrian Hallmark, Chairman and Chief Executive of Bentley Motors, said, “From its moment of launch nearly five years ago, the Bentayga has been the very definition of the luxury SUV. Like the Continental GT, the Bentayga created an entirely new part of the market, and since we set the benchmark many others have joined the sector, but no other car can offer a breadth of ability to rival the Bentayga.

“With the new Bentayga, we’re repositioning the pinnacle of the luxury SUV segment to be even higher, even further away from the competition. We’ve listened to our customers and made improvements to the areas most important to them, and the new Bentayga is a thoroughly modern and beautiful extension of the original car’s abilities and achievements.”

The Bentley Bentayga on sale in India has been unchanged since 2018. Meanwhile the previous iteration of the Bentayga Hybrid went on sale in Europe in September last year. Hence, it would be safe to assume the facelifted Bentayga (not the hybrid or Speed variant) could make to our shore by the middle of the next year. Once here, it could go up against the likes of the Lamborghini Urus and the Rolls-Royce Cullinan.