High-Flying Spur! Bentley teases its most insanely powerful V8 hybrid luxury saloon yet
Efficiency and luxury limos aren’t usually bedfellows but Bentley’s all-new hybrid technology is promising to deliver both in the incoming 2025 Flying Spur.
There will be a large measure of ‘epic power’ thrown into the mix too.
Teased for the first time ahead of its full unveil later this year, Bentley’s fourth-generation Flying Spur sedan has been confirmed with the same advanced ‘Ultra Performance Hybrid’ V8 powertrain as the recently-launched Continental GT Speed.
That means it will come with a mighty electrified twin-turbo 4.0-litre V8 that produces combined outputs of 575kW and 1000Nm.
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Occupants will have to be prepared for a neck-snapping 0-100km/h dash of around 3.5 seconds and a top speed of more than 300km/h.
That’s all in a 5.4-metre long luxury limo set to feature airline fold-flat massage seats.
Best of all, for those multi-millionaire captain of industries with a conscience, the latest plug-in hybrid Flying Spur will have an all-electric range of around 72km, enabling them to be shuttled around the business district in silence and without emitting CO2.
On a longer cruise the added electrification has now extended the cruising range to more than 800km – that’s the same as the last V6-powered Flying Spur PHEV that ‘only’ produced 400kW.
From the teaser, it’s clear the Flying Spur will feature a fresh face that keeps the current cars double-headlamp design, shunning the Continental GT’s more aggressive speared-ovals look.
Other design elements include what looks like a larger and more upright honeycomb grille and reshaped side air intakes, plus a ‘Flying B’ bonnet emblem.
Despite packing supercar levels of performance, Bentley says the new Flying Spur will deliver “silent, effortless luxury”.
Some of that ‘effortless’ will come from the electric motor that lives within the transmission that is said to boost acceleration at low engine speeds, but also in the mid-range for strong overtaking performance on the open road.
One unexpected treat for owners, when you awake the V8 twin-turbo Bentley greets you with a V8 soundtrack.
A “significant amount of development” is reported to have been invested in the exhaust note – which does without any artificial enhancement – to emphasise its cross-plane crank design.
That’s something normally favoured by American muscle cars, suggesting it will come with a deep engine note.
Bentley had yet to announce when the new Flying Spur will be fully revealed but expect its world debut to happen a little later this year.
