Bentayga: Bentley SUV Breaks Pikes Peak Record

The trek up Pikes Peak International Hill Club is difficult. The course is 12.42 miles long, climbing 5,000 ft. through 156 unique corners. Most drivers in most cars would take that at a slow crawl, checking for guard rails every few seconds. With the Bentayga, Bentley set a record. The Bentley Bentayga averaged 66.5 mph across the course. Driven by New Zealand’s Rhys Millen, the Bentayga smashed records to complete the route in only 10 minutes and 49.9 seconds.

Bentayga: Bentley Record Breaker

What other SUV could do that? Well, we know because so many other SUVs have tried. The answer is none of them. Bentley now holds the Pike Peak record for a production SUV. Not bad for a day’s (or 10:49.9 minutes!) work.

Power & Control

How did the Bentayga do this? It had a great driver in Millen, but even a great driver needs a great car to set records. The Bentley Bentayga specs tell the whole story. It starts with a W12 engine producing 600 horsepower, and an adaptive air suspension that returns to the driver much of the control other SUVs would lose to the road.

The active electric 48V anti-roll control helps the driver on hairpin turns where the Bentayga’s momentum must remain under control. Carbon ceramic brakes offer top-line stopping power, enabling tight control into a turn, until those 600 horses rev up and accelerate out of it.

A Look at the Bentley Bentayga Specs: A Joy to Drive

The Bentley Bentayga specs are the same between the one that broke the Pikes Peak record and the one that’s available to customers. Only safety changes for the driver were made: racing seats for the front, removing the rear seats for a roll cage and fire suppression system, and Pirelli’s DOT-marked tires selected for the route. The power, the handling, the control…that’s all the same as the production specs.

Bentley will be releasing a limited run of 10 cars to celebrate breaking the Pikes Peak record. These are the rarest of the rare, bespoke creations by Mulliner. Featuring a number of unique elements that pay homage to the feat, it will be available starting in August.