Bentley has taken the wraps off the all-new Flying Spur hyper-luxury limo. According to the Crewe-based luxury automaker, the third-generation model represents a “quantum leap in technology, performance, and innovation.” Described as “the finest super-luxury sports sedan ever built,” the new Bentley Flying Spur will go head-to-head with the likes of Porsche Panamera and Mercedes-AMG S63. As 2019 is a special year for Bentley with the British manufacturer celebrating its 100th anniversary, the 2020 Flying Spur has a long list of special touches, including a newly designed emblem for it. Bentley says the new Flying Spur is completely new from the ground up and doesn’t share its underpinnings with the rest of the family. Instead, it built on a brand-new platform. The exterior design, though, borrows a lot of styling cues from the Continental GT. The newly designed Flying B mascot that electronically deploys and has illuminated is definitely the highlight of the luxury grand tourer’s exterior. Muscular lines, the giant matrix grille, and the redesigned headlights and tail lamps that have the same crystal-cut-effect LEDs as found on the Continental GT give it a bold, confident stance.
On the inside, the cabin is offered with 15 different hide colors for the seats and features an industry-first three-dimensional diamond quilted leather on the door cards. Old-fashioned dials and a wood veneer is balanced by modern touches such as the rotating 12.3-inch touchscreen in the center of the dashboard. The new Flying Spur comes with the 10-speaker sound system as standard which can be upgraded to a 16-speaker, 1,500-watt Bang & Olufsen unit or a range-topping 19-speaker, 2,200-watt Naim system with active bass transducers incorporated in the front seats.
The 2020 Flying Spur has been launched with the automaker’s familiar range-topping twin-turbocharged W12 engine re-tuned to produce 626 horsepower and 664 pound-feet of torque. It is enough to rocket the uber-luxurious sedan from zero to 60mph in just 3.7 seconds and help it achieve a top speed of 207mph. Power is sent to all four wheels via the same eight-speed, ZF-sourced, dual-clutch transmission found in the Continental GT. An entry-level V8 will be added to the range at a later stage along with a V6 petrol-powered plug-in hybrid completing the line-up. The new Flying Spur also is the first Bentley to get all-wheel steering that promises to enhance stability at high speeds and maneuverability in tight spaces. The Flying Spur will be available to order from this fall and customer deliveries will begin in early 2020. There is no word on the pricing as of yet.
