Review: Bentley’s Opulent Bentayga EWB Azure V8 SUV Is a Surprisingly Agile Beast
Nearly ten years after Bentley unveiled its Bentayga SUV, the British luxury marque continues to refine the model, now offering the Bentayga Extended Wheelbase (EWB) Azure V8. And as with every Bentayga EWB, this one, starting at $271,400, caters to those who will be spending most of their time in the back as they are chauffeured in their mobile sanctuary. Adding to the sybaritic aesthetic is the Azure trim package’s styling cues and host of amenities.
One of the most opulent and comfortable chariots to come from the Crewe-based automaker, the Bentayga EWB Azure V8 may be bigger dimensionally than the base model, but we found it offered a surprisingly engaging drive experience overall, and displayed unexpected maneuverability. The root of the EWB moniker is derived from the fact that this Bentayga’s wheelbase is 7.1 inches longer than that of the standard Bentayga, reaching 125 inches, while the vehicle’s overall length is 208.9 inches. Visually, its stretched-out rear doors, which have also been enlarged, convey this change the most. Bentley added power-closing functionality via a switch in the rear seating area’s center console, and, conversely, the doors power-open with a light pull from the outside.
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The EWB’s front and rear passenger areas mirror those found in the standard body style, particularly when it comes to legroom, which measures out to 41.7 inches up front and 40.9 inches in back. Both rows get nearly half an inch of added head room with the EWB.
Tacking on Bentley’s Airline Seat Specification ($11,530) is where the real potential in the EWB lies. These sumptuous seats are 22-way adjustable, with the right-rear seat able to recline up to 40 degrees while simultaneously deploying a footrest for optimal comfort. The left-rear passenger can as well, just without the driver there. These massaging seats also contain sensors that measure an occupant’s body temperature and alter the climate system to maintain the ideal level of comfort.
Normally, regardless of vehicle class, extending the wheelbase doesn’t always bode well for overall handling. However, this isn’t the case when it comes to the EWB’s driving characteristics. To aid in changing direction with ease, Bentley has given this Bentayga rear-wheel steering, which results in a turning circle of just 38.7 feet—two feet smaller than that of the standard Bentayga. Maneuvering through narrow city streets and parking lots in Los Angeles was never a chore, in fact, its 360-degree camera, good overall visibility, and reverse camera made it quite easy to make fine adjustments in the tightest of spaces. It was, however, a tad awkward to be poking out noticeably further than many other vehicles while parked, and the parking sensors were a little too overprotective of the 22-inch, five-spoke wheels while parallel-parking within reasonable distance to the curb.
The Bentayga EWB Azure’s prodigious stature didn’t get in the way of dispatching some of Angeles National Forest’s best canyon roads. In fact, wielding the 5,542-pound colossus through a myriad of sweepers, hairpins, and double-apexes was exhilarating rather than frustrating. In Sport mode, pitch and yaw were very well contained thanks to the Bentayga’s adaptive dampers that are joined by air-suspended front double-wishbone and rear multi-link independent suspension. Tying each axle together is Bentley’s Dynamic Ride, an active anti-roll-bar system that changes the stiffness of the front and rear anti-roll bars—or disconnects them altogether—via 48-volt electric motors. As a result, the ride felt flat and stable, even through a handful of tight, technical stretches of tarmac at speed.
One of our few gripes about the Bentayga’s coupe cousin, the Continental GT, is that its steering doesn’t load up enough off-center or provide much feedback. For the much bigger Bentayga, on the other hand, Bentley has given its surprisingly quick steering action a respectable amount of progressively added weight and feedback. It wouldn’t give the Lotus Emira a run for its money in that department, but it’s among the best we’ve experienced in a large SUV.
The EWB Azure only has a weight increase of 218 pounds compared to Bentaygas with the original wheelbase, and can cover zero to 60 mph in just 4.2 seconds. This metric is owed to its 542 hp, 4.0-liter twin-turbo V-8—with 568 ft lbs of torque—and the quick-shifting eight-speed automatic gearbox, which also helps it voraciously pull like a train.
Once back on the city’s woefully underfunded roadways, we found the ride quality wasn’t quite as enhanced as expected when set to Comfort mode, which softens up the dampers and air bags for optimum over-the-road wafting. It was generally good, but still had some pronounced jitteriness over especially rough patches that the more performance-oriented Continental GT would iron out quite well.
The 2024 Bentley Bentayga EWB Azure V8 is ideal for the chauffeured owner who places a premium on arriving at their destination refreshed and rejuvenated, or who needs ample space to work while on the road. As for the driver, well they’re in for a pampering sensory experience of their own.
Click below for more photos of the Bentley Bentayga EWB Azure V8.
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