Bentley Flying Spur 2024 review: Hybrid

In a sign of the times, the Flying Spur is the sole remaining four-door sedan in the Bentley line-up, as it now focuses on the Continental GT coupe and convertible and the Bentayga SUV.

While it may be the ‘old-fashioned’ member of the range, it’s probably the one that suits… shall we say… ‘traditional’ Bentley customers.

A four-door sedan is certainly not a ‘young person's’ car, but it clearly has a place and serves a role for the brand.

The Flying Spur is the sole remaining four-door sedan in the Bentley line-up. (Image: Stephen Ottley)

The Flying Spur range begins at $445,200 for the V8-powered model or $456,000 for the Hybrid (both prices exclude on-road costs). Although, as with any luxury vehicle, the starting price is just that, a starting point before you add your personalisation options.

In the case of our test car, pictured, it ended up at $589,641, with that extra $133,641 coming with a range of additional extras that, to be blunt, are surprisingly not standard.

For example, an inductive smartphone charging pad is a cost option, remarkable for a car of this price, when you consider it’s standard on low- and mid-grade Hyundai and Kia models.

The optional 'Mulliner Driving Specification' adds 22-inch 10-spoke alloy wheels, diamond quilted leather seats, sports pedals and more, but the Touring Specification includes active lane-keeping assist - all items that you could reasonably expect to be included on your $400K luxury car.

What is standard are the full LED matrix headlights, 20-inch alloy wheels and a 12.3-inch central touchscreen that incorporates navigation, Bluetooth and WiFi streaming, smartphone connectivity and even includes a CD/DVD slot. 

The standard sound system is a 650W, 10-speaker set-up, but you can option a Bang & Olufsen 1500W, 16-speaker system or even a 2200W, 19-speaker Naim option.

Upfront of the Flying Spur is a 12.3-inch central touchscreen. (Image: Stephen Ottley)

Not surprisingly, there’s generous room inside this modern limousine. The Flying Spur is one of those cars you’d enjoy being driven in, arguably even more than driving.

But before we talk about the back seat accommodations, let’s start in the driver’s seat.

The front of the cabin is another display of traditional luxury with a blend of modern technology. There is a veritable smorgasbord of premium materials - fine leather, bright metals and genuine wood veneers. 

The rear vanity mirrors that flip down from the ceiling are optional extras. (Image: Stephen Ottley)

The steering wheel is thick and wrapped in very nice leather so it feels great, as does the supple hide that covers the soft but supportive seat.

In front of the driver is a digital dashboard but the graphics are traditional round dials for the speedo and tacho, with a central area for other key information, such as the use of the hybrid system.

For the trained eye there are some giveaways that Bentley is part of the Volkswagen Group, the way some of the graphics are presented, some of the switchgear and other small elements - but nothing overt.

The Flying Spur features pillow-like headrests. (Image: Stephen Ottley)

Space in the rear is very good, with more-than-adequate head, knee and legroom, but it’s not expansive as you’ll find in an extended-wheelbase vehicle, like its Bentayga SUV sibling.

Still, those in the rear are well looked after, elevating the Flying Spur beyond what you’ll typically find in a ‘luxury car’ - like those from the ‘big three’ German brands.

There are pillow-like headrests, for example, as well as plenty more premium materials and leather-lined surfaces.

The Flying Spur has a boot capacity of 351 litres. (Image: Stephen Ottley)

But, again, a lot of the items fitted to our test car were cost options, such as the panoramic sunroof, rear window sun blinds and vanity mirrors that flip down from the ceiling.

Boot space is another surprising element of the Flying Spur, because despite the overall size of the car, it measures just 351 litres. For comparison, the Toyota Corolla sedan has a 470-litre boot.

It’s oddly shaped too, with space lost to the wheel arches and other hidden hardware, with even more room given up for the large charging cable bag.

This is obviously the centrepiece of the Flying Spur Hybrid and under the bonnet you’ll find a 2.9-litre twin-turbocharged V6 petrol engine paired with an electric motor and 18kWh lithium-ion battery.

The petrol engine makes 306kW/550Nm on its own, with the electric motor good for 100kW/400Nm and combined Bentley claims the powertrain produces 400kW/750Nm.

That power is sent to all four wheels via an eight-speed dual-clutch auto transmission.

Bentley claims the Flying Spur Hybrid is quick, as well as efficient, sprinting from 0-100km/h in just 4.3 seconds, with top speed rated at 285km/h.

Under the bonnet is a 2.9-litre twin-turbocharged V6 petrol engine paired with an electric motor and 18kWh lithium-ion battery. (Image: Stephen Ottley)

Fuel consumption and electric driving range are always tricky to judge with plug-in hybrids. The official testing cycle favours the combination of electric and petrol power resulting in an official combined cycle figure that’s difficult to hit in the real world.

As was the case with the Flying Spur Hybrid, which has claimed figures of 3.3L/100km, but we could only reach 6.5L/100km during our time in the car.

To be fair, less than 7.0L/100km for such a big, heavy and powerful car is still an impressive return, but it’s well short of the claim.

The Flying Spur Hybrid has claimed figures of 3.3L/100km. (Image: Stephen Ottley)

In terms of electric-only range and the energy consumption of the battery, Bentley claims an EV driving range of 40km, which we also found hard to manage during our test drive. 

The claimed energy use of 9.2kWh/100km is optimistic, though, with the car’s computer telling us it was actually 22.3kWh/100km.

Overall, Bentley claims the Flying Spur Hybrid has a maximum driving range of 804km thanks to the combination of electric and petrol power. 

The standard list of safety features includes front, side and curtain airbags as well as city assist (low-speed autonomous emergency braking), pedestrian warning, reverse cross-traffic warning and top view parking camera.

However, you’ll need to pay extra for the 'Touring Specification' pack that brings active lane assist, night vision and 'Bentley Safeguard Plus' (which adds high-speed autonomous emergency braking and pre-collision mitigation).

It’s shocking that nearly $500,000 doesn’t get you a comprehensive suite of active safety features and it hurts the appeal of the Flying Spur in some regard.

The Flying Spur hasn’t been crash tested by ANCAP, likely due to the high cost of the car and the relatively low sales volumes. 

The 'Touring Specification' pack brings active lane assist, night vision and 'Bentley Safeguard Plus'. (Image: Stephen Ottley)