Bentley has long been synonymous with luxury, but the British marque seems determined to dial up the sporting side to its character.
Last year, Bentley unveiled the Supersports, a lightweight, rear-driven road racer. A ‘FULL SEND’ video, with Travis Pastrana driving fast and sideways around the company’s campus in Crewe, introduced the 666hp coupe to 2.6 million viewers (and counting) on YouTube.
In recent times, we’ve also seen the rally-inspired Bentayga X concept, the more dynamic and driver-focused Continental GT S, and the car driven here: the new 2026 Bentley Bentayga Speed.
Has new-ish CEO Frank-Steffen Walliser – who spent 29 years at Porsche, led development of the 918 Spyder and was informally known as ‘Mr 911’ – lost sight of Bentley’s core values amidst the clouds of tyre smoke? And more pertinently, does an opulent SUV like the Bentayga really have a need for Speed?
No hybrid hardware here
Like its Continental GT Speed cousin, the brawniest Bentayga no longer packs a 6.0-litre W12. The long-serving 12-cylinder engine was killed off by emissions legislation in 2024.
However, while the Continental GT coupe and GTC convertible adopted plug-in hybrid technology, Bentley’s SUV relies solely on a 4.0-litre twin-turbocharged V8. Essentially the same motor found in the Audi RS6 and Lamborghini Urus SE, it drives all four wheels via an eight-speed ZF automatic transmission.
Performance? Yes, there is plenty of that. Outputs of 650hp and 627lb ft mean the 2,466kg Bentayga can blast to 62mph in 3.6 seconds – three tenths quicker than the old W12. Maximum speed is 193mph.
Less positively, the lack of electric assistance means the Speed drinks fuel at a rate of 21.6 miles per gallon, and CO2 emissions of 298g/km place it in the top tax band. It will also cost you £219,000 – compared to £169,000 for the most ‘basic’ Bentayga.
Big boost, big brakes
To gain the extra power, Bentley fitted the V8 with larger injectors, lowered its compression ratio and turned up the turbo boost. There’s also a new sports exhaust system, although my car had the Akrapovic titanium upgrade: yours for £7,740. This saves a negligible 12.5kg of weight, but sounds sensational.
Another essential option on the Bentayga Speed is Dynamic Specification (£10,370), which adds carbon-ceramic brakes with 440mm front discs (the largest fitted to any road car) inside imposing 23-inch alloy wheels.
Despite those enormous rims – and provided you don’t spec the Orange Flame paint pictured here – the once-controversial Bentayga looks quite restrained by super SUV standards. Aesthetic changes for the Speed are modest, but include dark-tinted headlights, clear tail lights, black exterior trim and a roof spoiler.
Inside the Bentley Bentayga Speed
Thankfully, Bentley hasn’t changed too much inside the Bentayga either. You’ll discover gorgeously plush materials, hewn-from-solid quality and endless scope for customisation. From the diamond-quilted leather on the seats to the knurled aluminium on the driving mode dial, it’s one of the best cabins of any new car.
Granted, there are fewer, smaller screens than in some of the Bentayga’s rivals, including the benchmark Range Rover. Yet in our digital age, analogue controls seem increasingly upmarket – never mind being easier to operate. The Bentley offers all the connectivity you’d expect, of course, but technology doesn’t dominate the experience.
Being a large SUV (an even longer Bentayga EWB is available, although not in Speed guise), the Bentley is very roomy inside, with a practical 484-litre boot. It has five seats as standard, but you can also specify four individual chairs, or seven seats across three rows.
A visit to Bentley’s bespoke Mulliner division will introduce a head-spinning variety of veneer, upholstery and stitching options on top. I could pass on most of them, but highly recommend the Naim Premium Audio (£7,350). At times when it seems a bit anti-social to engage Sport mode and unleash the full Akrapovic aural assault, the 1,780W, 20-speaker system is the next best thing.
Eight equals more than 12
Not so long ago, the Bentley’s 650 metric horses would have made it leader of the SUV pack. Today, it looks slightly under-endowed alongside the Aston Martin DBX S (727hp), Lamborghini Urus SE (800hp) and new Porsche Cayenne Turbo Electric (a frankly ridiculous 1,156hp).
Step back from the horsepower arms race, though, and 650hp is plenty for the public road. And having a snorting, cackling and bellowing V8 up front is far more exciting than any combination of batteries and electric motors. Did I mention the deliciously naughty exhaust? Ah, so I did.
Smooth and amenable low down, the engine becomes manically eager as the revs rise, the Bentayga gathering pace like a runaway train. Yes, on paper it looks like a downgrade versus a W12, but the V8 is more powerful, more evocative and (slightly) more efficient. What you lose in pub bragging rights, you gain back in abundance on the road.
To ‘B’ or not to ‘B’
In terms of ride and handling, the Speed strikes a balance approximately mid-way between the isolating luxury of a Rolls-Royce Cullinan and the unashamed aggression of the Lamborghini.
Sport mode stiffens the damping by 15 percent, which makes potholes and speed humps feel noticeably more abrupt – no doubt exacerbated by the 23-inch wheels. As ever, the best compromise is probably ‘B’ (for ‘Bentley’) mode, which adapts the car’s characteristics to suit your inputs and the road surface. Driven as such, the Bentayga feels limber and agile, aided by brake vectoring and 48V active anti-roll bars to combat the forces of physics.
A ESC Dynamic mode, included with the optional Dynamic Specification, allows a few degrees of slip, so the Bentley can move around a little. However, opportunities for using it, particularly given this SUV’s girth relative to British roads, are few and far-between. Besides, have you seen the price of 23-inch tyres?
Verdict: Bentley Bentayga Speed
The Bentayga Speed has more attitude than I’d expected. It feels poised and purposeful from behind the wheel, and sounds like a Mercedes-AMG G63 rumbling through Knightsbridge.
Nonetheless, while the Speed heads up the regular (non-EWB) range, I’m not convinced this is the best Bentayga. If you want a performance SUV that is engaging to drive, the new Aston Martin DBX S feels more polished. And if you simply want the wow-factor, the G-Wagen and Urus SE are even more extroverted and exotic.
The Bentayga has traditionally erred towards cosseting luxury rather than point-to-point pace, and that’s still what it does best. So I’d buy the entry-level 3.0 V6 Hybrid for daily comfort, then spend the £50,000 saving on a sports car for weekend fun. A used Porsche 911 would do nicely – I’m sure Herr Walliser would agree.
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