That’s no particular fault of the car’s new S-specific suspension settings, it must be noted. The S Hybrid gets the same uprated adaptive air suspension as the V8-engined S, with its damper rates increased by 15%. It doesn’t get Bentley’s Dynamic Ride active anti-roll bars, because of the packaging of the PHEV system – although I wouldn’t say that you miss them.
This car has creditable body control, chassis response and handling precision for the big, luxury conveyance that it is (it’s nearly 250kg heavier than the S) and will maintain both its dynamic composure and ride isolation fairly well if you choose to hurry it along. So there’s more than a modicum of sporting appeal about the driving experience.
The slightly disinterested-feeling V6 is just a little unworthy of one of Bentley’s S badges, though. Even when the electric motor is doing all that it can to assist, it still feels a little bit short on accessible torque in a car of this size and weight, needing revs (and downshifts from the slightly lazy, slow-witted torque-converter automatic gearbox) before it produces anything close to really commanding pace.
When you’re cruising around in EV mode, Bentley’s improvements to the Bentayga’s battery and electric motor do tell. You can comfortably spirit it up to the far side of 50mph in the sweep of daily traffic without needing any extra grunt from the engine, and if you keep to those sorts of speeds, you will find 30 miles of EV driving easy enough to achieve.
