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Bentley Flying Spur 2017 Review
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Bentley Flying Spur 2017 Review

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November 16,2016
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10 min read

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Bentley Flying Spur 2016

Bentley Motors, a staple of luxury and success, has been operational since 1919 and was founded by a man named Walter Owen Bentley (MBE). They started out making aluminum pistons for warplanes during the first World War, and it wasn’t until 1921 that W.O Bentley built his first motor car. Having come a long way since then, today Bentley is heralded as the trendsetter in automotive luxury.

The first-generation Bentley Flying Spur ran from 2006-2013 with the new facelifted Flying Spur being introduced in 2014. Both versions were sold with two engine types: the V8 twin turbo and the W12. The Flying spur is an all-wheel-drive vehicle with a rear based ratio of 60:40 mated to an 8-speed gearbox.

The Bentley Continental Flying Spur’s competitors are the BMW M760Li, the Rolls Royce Ghost Series II, and the Mercedes AMG S65 S. They each have their upsides and downsides but if your budget is between AED 900,000 and AED 1,300,000, and you need four luxurious seats, it'll be one of these four that you pick. 

Key Features:  
Engine 6.0L Twin Turbo W12
Transmission 8 Speed Automatic with Tiptronic
Power 626hp / 820NM
Top Speed 325km/h
Price AED 940,000 - 1,300,000

Exterior

The 2017 Bentley Flying Spur W12 S has a strikingly sporty body for a large luxury sedan, with subtle and sleek gloss black details sprayed across the vehicle as well as the powerful W12 S badge. The 21” 5 spoke metal grey rims make a statement that this is no ordinary luxury cruiser and the deep purple paint was starting to seduce us.

Bentley Flying Spur 2016 Front

The W12 S comes with a sports front bumper which gives the illusion of the car being much lower than it is and this leads me onto the stance. Wow, what an impression this vehicle leaves on you!

Having said that, our issue is not with only the W12 but the Flying Spur range - we understand that it is partially based on the Continental GT, but we would have liked to see more significant styling changes to increase the gap and allow it to become its own car.

Bentley Flying Spur 2016

The tail lights look great, with the new slimmer light design, making the vehicle look much more streamlined than the previous model. But the front headlights, simply fail to grab as much attention. 

Interior

The interior of the Flying Spur is a truly magnificent masterpiece. A few quick facts to elaborate: every aspect of the car is hand crafted and it takes 130 hours to build just one, the interior takes 25 hours to upholster by hand, and the veneers have 5 layers of lacquer applied to them before they can even be considered for quality control.

2016 Bentley Flying Spur Interior

As expected the cabin is customizable in every way from the color of the stitching to the color of the leather and veneers, everything, at a price. The rear center armrest can be opened to expose several controls, from heating and cooling to massage in 3 different modes, and can be reclined to a comfortable sleeping position with a surprising amount of legroom still available.

One of the most special things about a Bentley is the finishing, every knob and button is aluminum and has a premium touch to it, even the ashtrays are one solid piece of aluminum. Everywhere you look in the W12 S, you know someone somewhere has spent a lot of time making sure you feel like you're in a yacht every time you step in, and that's special for a car.

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Safety & Tech

The 2017 Bentley Flying Spur comes with, as expected, top of the range safety features. This includes front impact airbags for the driver and passenger, side impact airbags for all 4 passengers, overhead airbags in case of a rollover, and knee airbags.

2016 Bentley Flying Spur Interior - 2

The W12 S also has seatbelt pretensioners that automatically tighten the belts to keep the occupants in the correct seating position during a crash. It was also interesting to discover that Bentley doesn’t submit its cars for crash tests – as there’s no point in wrecking a Bentley that is guaranteed to pass with flying colors.

The Flying Spur comes standard with a vast array of technology and has some pretty special optional extras as well. The infotainment system can be operated from any seat in the car, every passenger can view vehicle data, journey information, control the telephone, music and air-conditioning, all through the wireless touch screen remote located in the rear cabin.

The W12 S also comes with several audio options, but the one want and need is the Naim premium audio system made exclusively for Bentley. Fitted with 11-speakers, it does set new standards when listening to music. The new Flying Spur W12 S is one of the quietest cars they make, keeping all the exterior noise out through sound proof panels in every door, meaning you are left with a  ridiculously peaceful ride, no matter where the road takes you.

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Drive

Bentley has made this engine to put it above the rest and with the massive 6.0L Twin Turbocharged W12 producing 626 Hp and a colossal 820 NM of torque, it sure is. Compared to the Rolls Royce Ghost’s 526 horsepower and 780 Nm of torque, or the BMW M760 Li’s 600 horsepower and 800 Nm of torque, the Bentley retains podium position.

Bentley Flying Spur 2016 Interior

The W12 S challenges preconceptions when you put the pedal to the metal because it shouldn't be able to do what it can. Weighing in at 2,972 Kg, it's a heavy car and yet when you point it around a bend, the car stiffens up and just ploughs through it. But there’s no need to display the hooligan antics, because with 820 Nm of torque, overtaking at virtually any point in time is an absolute piece of cake.

The car comes standard with carbon ceramic brakes, which no matter how much abuse you put them through, will always bring this mammoth of a car to a stop quickly. The 8-speed gearbox is sublime and gearshifts are difficult to notice. Suspension is tuned exclusively for the W12 S and improves roll control and responsiveness, resulting in greater agility than any Flying Spur before it, all while maintaining a supremely comfortable ride matching the rest of the range.

Competitors

Mercedes AMG S 65

BMW M760LI

Rolls Royce Ghost Series II

Verdict

A fantastic offering from Bentley that ticks all the boxes for a top-quality luxury cruiser and is the quickest 4-door to don the Bentley badge. The issue is that in this type of vehicle who wants to go fast? Stick with the V8 Flying Spur and save yourself 100 odd grand.

Bentley Flying Spur 2016 Rear

Pros:

Quality of the cabin, especially the small features

Power is truly surprising

Exclusivity associated with the brand

Cons:

Price, with it not being far off the Mulsanne

Steering lacks feedback

Editor's Pick:

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Rolls Royce Phantom comes to an end

Also See:

2016 Future Mobility Conference Overview

Ford EcoSport 2017 Undergoes Restyling

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