Off the back of a record start to the year in terms of sales, profit and production (it’s doing rather well), Bentley has launched this – the Flying Spur Hybrid. 

Now, Bentley is understandably rather proud of the Flying Spur, so the changes are minimal for this PHEV version. The obvious alteration comes under the bonnet, and just like the Bentayga Hybrid, the Flying Spur gets a twin-turbocharged V6 engine.

It’s actually a later generation of V6 than the one in the recently updated Bentayga, though. The Flying Spur’s is a more powerful 2.9-litre unit (compared to 3.0 litres) that makes 410bhp and 550 Nmof torque on its own. When working in conjunction with the 134bhp electric motor and a 14.1kWh battery, the total usable output is an impressive 536bhp and 750 Nm ft of torque. The system in the Bentayga only manages 443bhp all-in. 

You’ll get around 40 km of all-electric range from the Flying Spur, as well as a 0-100 kph time of 4.1 seconds. For reference, that’s the same sprint time as the 4.0-litre twin-turbo V8-engined Flying Spur and only 0.3 seconds off the full-fat twin-turbo W12. Not bad, right?

Bentley has confirmed that there have been slight updates to the air suspension system to reflect the new weight distribution - it’s apparently a naturally better-balanced car with weighty batteries towards the rear and a lighter combustion engine up front - but that the goal was to make these changes imperceptible to buyers. You do get a little ‘Hybrid’ badge on the wings to let everyone know you didn’t buy the V8 or W12, though. 

This is just the second hybridised Bentley, but the brand announced late last year that every car it sells will be either a plug-in hybrid or fully electric by 2026. Next in line for that hybridisation? The Continental GT…