[Auto] Range Rover vs Bentley Bentayga: Classy Brit brawlers face off

[Agent47]

 

 

Two-hundred-and-eight grand. Sorry, I just needed to see it written down. That’s what this Bentley Bentayga has been optioned up to from its list price of £147,600. A little uncommon, I’ll grant you – but not unknown.

Anyway, at least it makes the idea of an £89,000 Range Rover somewhat easier to get your head around, no? This is, as much as anything, a luxury car comparison test.

I’m not sure Bentley would agree, though. This mere £89,110 (as tested; £86,920 before options) is a Mercedes-Benz price, not a Bentley one. In a different sphere, mate. Well, we’ll see, shall we? How far can the Range Rover’s appeal stretch? And can it make it all the way to the Bentayga?

Aesthetically speaking, things have moved on for the Bentayga since its 2016 introduction, thanks to some modifications last year (hence us having this test), which I think you can tell most notably by the new elliptical tail-lights.

There are changes inside, too. Bentley says more than 1000 components have been changed overall, but given that those things include matrix headlights and new windscreen wipers, you know you’re dealing with a fundamentally similar car.
Inside, the most telling changes to a cabin that feels brilliantly constructed and finished, albeit here with a slightly left-field sort-of-burnished metal trim, are a new central touchscreen and a digital instrument pack. The layout retains some separate buttons for some of the more commonly used comfort and audio features, thankfully, although I still think it could do with a separate rotary controller to navigate through the menus.

There are new seats, too, which are pleasingly supportive, large and comfy and sit you in a fairly car-like driving position for what is a big SUV, with a snug, high window line at about shoulder height.

And make no mistake, this is a big SUV, still measuring 5125mm long and 1998mm wide, minus mirrors. And it weighs 2416kg with this 4.0-litre V8 petrol engine, which drives all four wheels through an eight-speed automatic gearbox.

Bentley likes its cars to accomplish a lot (this one can), it likes them to have a lot of rear leg and head room (this one does) and it flogs them all over the world. The Bentayga has to be rated to tow 3.5 tonnes, be a luxury car, be an off-roader (so there’s variableheight air suspension) and do 180mph, so it’s a big old beast, with 542bhp and 568lb ft, no less. Quite literally, for the moment, no more and no less: with no W12 Speed for us and a plug-in hybrid version not yet available to order, this is currently the only engine you can order for the Bentayga in the UK.
Some of this Range Rover’s numbers are a bit different, largely because it’s a diesel, but the new mild-hybrid D300 is the engine that suits it best. It’s an in-line six-cylinder diesel, again with an eight-speed automatic ’box, but it makes just 296bhp and 479lb ft, so it’s obviously quite a lot slower at 130mph flat out. But it also has less mass to push along. The kerb weight is 2275kg and there’s a hint of mild-hybrid electrification to do a bit of torque-filling and make it more responsive.

The exterior dimensions aren’t so different. The Range Rover is bang on five metres long and only 8mm narrower across its body than the Bentayga, so perhaps it’s because it sits 88mm taller that it gives a vibe of being narrower, although it could also be due to its lower window line or lower boot opening.

The Range Rover’s tailgate is split by the time the lower half has dropped down, so the load height is the same as the Bentley’s but the aperture seems bigger. There’s nothing in it when it comes to boot space itself – 485 litres for the Range Rover, 484 in the Bentley – and head and leg room is just as good in the Range Rover as it is in the Bentayga.

The Range Rover feels more spacious, though, with a window line closer to your elbow rather than up around your shoulder. Land Rover talks often about its ‘command’ driving position, but here is where it pays off. You get a much more comprehensive view out, while huge mirrors and relatively flat body sides make the Range Rover dead easy to place on the road.