2017 Bentley Bentayga: 6SpeedOnline Video Review

By Manuel Carrillo III - July 10, 2017

It’s the Bentley that can get dirt under its fingernails, and here’s why that makes this SUV the most luxurious vehicle to ever wear the flying B.

When it comes to the premium SUV segment, fewer than five percent of owners ever take their vehicles off-road. With the 2017 Bentley Bentayga, that statistic is likely to drop below one percent.

Folks crazy enough to spend more than a quarter-million dollars on an SUV will draw a line at the edge of the asphalt when presented with the thought of taking something this expensive off-road. Our $278,370 Bentley Bentayga tester is $25,570 dearer than the U.S. Existing Home Median Sales Price. I don’t care if you’re Alec Baldwin in Glengarry Glen Ross telling Ed Harris you made $970,000 last year. There’s going to be hesitation in taking something so expensive off-road.

ALSO SEE: Bentley Continental GT Convertible Review

So what did I do when Bentley let me loose for a week with the Bentayga? I stuck my middle finger in the face of that low off-road percentage and brought this luxury SUV to a place where it was yearning to flex its muscles. I took it to Southern California’s El Mirage Dry Lake Off-Highway Recreation Area, and I got it dusty.

This plutocratic SUV is happy cruising Rodeo Drive, but I think it’s even happier after a full day of exploring the trails, and being the glittering tycoon among the common off-road proletariat. The Bentayga is already a happy-faced machine, but I swear at the end of the day once we were done shooting the video review above, this Bentley was beaming from wheel well to wheel well with gratitude for being put through its paces in the rocks and dirt.

I’m glad I got to take the Bentayga off-road. The on-road experience is expectedly smooth, comfortable and fast when you need it to be, but when you venture beyond the tarmac, that’s when the Bentayga begins to surprise. Until driving the Bentayga off-road, I was unaware suspension technology existed that could make dirt roads feel as smooth as asphalt. With every mile of dirt this SUV devoured, I kept thinking to myself, “How is Bentley doing this?” The quality of the suspension damping is 22nd century.

Thanks to its soft air springs, the Bentley Bentayga feels as though it accelerates faster than the Nissan GT-R.

The on-road experience had me beaming as well. The several-hundred miles I drove it on-road, the Bentayga was expectedly smooth. Anytime I wanted to laugh my butt off, and add a bit of headbanging to the Bentayga’s natural smooth jazz disposition, I’d simply stomp the loud pedal and let the 6.0L W12 rip the world in half with its 600 horsepower and 664 lb-ft of torque. The most surprising thing about the on-road experience? Thanks to its soft air springs, the Bentley Bentayga feels as though it accelerates faster than the Nissan GT-R I reviewed back in May. The Bentley is about a half-second slower to 60 than the GT-R, but the pronounced suspension squat under thrust amplifies the already abundant acceleration forces.

What a time to be alive. It’s 2017 and you can haul a 5,379-pound SUV 60 mph in 3.5 seconds. You can also take those 2.69 tons to 184 mph if the roads and laws allow. Once you’re done with that, you can explore roads unpaved, all while being coddled in one-percenter luxury. Because of this, the Bentley Bentayga may be the most versatile vehicle on sale today.

2017 Bentley Bentayga Desert Shot

Before this review glows out of the visible spectrum, let’s talk about some of the Bentayga’s problems. First there’s the price. The 278,370-dollar figure has a way of stinging the psyche. That’s not really the Bentley’s problem, though. That’s the problem of the people who can’t afford one. The Bentayga’s other major issue? Scads of people have told me they have a problem with the design. But again, that’s really not the Bentley’s problem. After all, beauty is in the eye of the beholder. I personally have no issues with this SUV’s styling, but if I were to force myself to complain, I’d say the rear fascia leaves me less than excited. That rump looks like it belongs on a sedan, not an SUV.

CHECK OUT: What the Forum is Saying About the Bentayga

Truly, the Bentley Bentayga has me scraping at the dregs of my dissatisfaction. It pleases me as much as something selling for north of a quarter-million should. As much as I’ve enjoyed it, it makes sense this is Bentley’s best-selling model. So far in 2017, Bentley has sold 509 Bentaygas, 479 Continental GTs, 115 Flying Spurs and 45 Mulsannes.

The Bentayga is the one product in Bentley’s portfolio that presents the most versatility and the fewest limitations. Even though Bentayga buyers will forgo taking their SUVs off-road, they like knowing they at least have the option to bring their bespoke luxury just about anywhere. That flavor of luxury without limits is the greatest indulgence Bentley has ever offered in its 98-year history. With the Bentayga, Bentley is striving for limitlessness like never before, and to me, that ambitiousness is the ultimate expression of luxury.