2025 Bentley Flying Spur: A Blueprint on Creating the Ultimate Executive Sedan

We've all had that supercar poster on our wall. What was yours? Lamborghini Countach? Ferrari 360? Porsche 911 Turbo? Whatever that wall art was, it single-handedly dictated your journey into car enthusiasm and – if you're fortunate – eventually found its way to you and your driveway.

We bet you never had this on your wall though: A Bentley Flying Spur Speed Ultra High Performance Hybrid... especially in orange.

We first got our hands on the Bentley four-door last year when it was pre-production up in Aspen, and we immediately fell in love with its long-body, ultra-menacing and aggressive "gangster" look. Our test car was painted in a seductive black metallic paint with black-on-black trimmings and wheels; just about as perfect of an executive ultra-luxury sedan could have gotten at that moment.

So now we were able to get a road-test-capable edition of the Flying Spur, in all of its twin-turbo V8 hybrid 771 hp glory. We knew we'd love the comfort and exquisite quality, but we definitely did not expect the orange paint and eventual embarrassment we felt driving it through the Carl's Jr. drive-thru. Needless to say, it wasn't our ideal spec.

We had a solid week with the 2025 Bentley Flying Spur Speed and drove it all around the greater Los Angeles and Orange County areas. It's a boatload of strong positives paired with a few letdowns, but overall a great contender for the car enthusiast who's finished with sports car roadsters and ready for that big-body Benz Bentley. Here's what we thought about it.

The Ride

For Bentley, comfort and luxury are highest of priority, while catering to the driver. How often have you heard that rivals Maybach and Rolls-Royce are cars “to be driven in,” rather than the opposite? Commendable at its core, but what we love about Bentley – particularly the four-door sedan Flying Spur – is that the car caters to all occupants.

Let’s talk engine first – the 4.0L V8 with two turbos translates to monstrous power, as one would expect. In sport mode, from a standstill, the Flying Spur’s engine soared off the line is a surprisingly linear manner. Endless torque from the turbos meant a consistent shove in the back like the sportiest of sports cars. Eight cylinders gives off a sonorous tone. Characteristics of a muscle car wrapped in a Tom Ford suit? Sure, but remember there’s a whole new ethos behind this car – electric performance and efficiency.

Don’t take for granted how much you’ll love a hybrid (twin-turbo V8) system, especially when you have 771 horsepower under your foot.

Shockingly, the electric-assisted engine wasn’t as disruptive as we’d imagine. While in Sport mode the car’s full 771 horsepower and 737 lb-ft of torque felt natural, almost like the electric motor’s extra horsepower wasn’t actually there. A simple twist of the drive mode selector to “B” (for 'Bentley,' the car's default mode) or “Comfort” would kick the engine off, resulting in a now-silent-and-still luxury limousine. Within electric-only speeds – up to 87 mph purportedly – the Flying Spur accelerated smoothly but regrettably with less fervor and excitement as with the ICE, and that’s fine. Trotting around suburbia or down the side streets of Los Angeles is perfect in the inconspicuous Bentley (had it not be for the color; more on that later). We found ourselves using the electric-only drive more than we anticipated as it paired perfectly with the smooth ride, much like the Rolls-Royce Spectre which we also test drove.

So the hybrid Flying Spur is truly the best the both worlds in this luxury limo stature – roaring boosted V8 on the freeway, efficient exclusivity while heading to Whole Foods. Don’t take for granted how much you’ll love a hybrid system, especially when you have 771 horsepower (combined) under your foot.

The Interior

What's a four-door Bentley without astonishing levels of luxury and comfort inside? The Flying Spur is everything we've ever dreamed about for the "matured" enthusiast who sees sexiness in long wheelbase cars. The simple stuff is all there – soft close doors, silent cabins with loads of sound deadening, massage seats, lashings of leather etc. But it's the attention to detail stuff that really makes the Flying Spur our Bentley of choice, even over the Continental GT and Bentayga.

The seats had a very specific design to them, employing optimal padding and stitching so that it felt like it "engulfed" the occupant. What does this mean? Well, imagine you sitting in a bean bag chair, made up of memory foam – it's that dramatic. The headrests and separate shoulder adjustments suited three separate body types we tried, while we never had trouble finding the proper seating position for visibility. When we were a bit more aggressive with the throttle and brake, the chairs did their best to hold us in, as the car admittedly rolled a bit in corners and tipped during hard braking – it is over 5,800 pounds in weight after all.

A few, but very minor let downs we discovered: let's start with the dual sunroofs. We conceded that the design was probably implemented so that there's clear separation from the front and rear passengers, but we would have more than likely appreciated a bit more tech in this in the form of an electrochromic moonroof, or a perma-tinted panoramic skylight. The gear selector had a bit of a weird shape to it as well – while attempting to shift into reverse, we caught our palm hitting the P (for Park) button on a few occasions. It never caused a real issue, but definitely affected us psychologically.

The all-touch dash is a point of contention we have not only with Bentley but other manufacturers, and there were more than a few instances of "wait where would that option be?" in terms of finding specific toggles. The massaging seats were the most frustrating; had we not accidentally found the button on the seat's edge (it's the smallest round button out of the bunch as well), we're not sure we would have ever found it. Apple CarPlay was dodgy – if you ever get out of the car to pick up your take-out, getting back in and reconnecting successfully is a real hit or miss. Lastly, we easily could tell who had the car before us (hello fellow car journalists), however we failed at finding a way to remove the Bluetooth connections from memory.

Nevertheless, the levels of luxury, comfort, tech and integration within the cabin were fairly enjoyable and spoke volumes to the cost/value of the Bentley Flying Spur.

The Price

There's no soft way of saying this: very few people will be able to afford the Bentley Flying Spur Ultra Performance Hybrid. To start, it's just over $275,000 USD.

For the casual car enthusiast, that's already an astronomical amount, but the options are even more eye-watering. Premium Naim sound system? $9,800 USD. Floor mats? $600 USD. The 'Flying B' radiator mascot in black gloss and illumination? $4,000 USD. But perhaps the most ostentatious feature and price attached to it was the Mandarin Orange exterior paint option – $22,000 USD. Congratulations: dor the price of a used E46 M3 in its beautiful Estoril Blue paint job, you just bought a small-home and painted it to look like a speed cone. For a Lamborghini it makes sense, but for a "gangster's car" like the Flying Spur, it made the most inconspicuous and therefore menacing car a "what the hell" moment for anyone driving next to you on the 405.

All of this is to make a point – the Bentley Flying Spur Speed is aimed at a very specific customer, one who is seeking the royalty-levels of commute and have very specific tastes that need to be fulfilled, including the orange paint. If you can't envision your life without a Bentley picking up your partner or kids from their private school, the Flying Spur is not for you and was never meant for you.

The Image

So you're driving around in a car that's easily the price of a house. It has enough legroom any human on the face of the Earth. There's enough power and torque to challenge anything with four wheels. Is this the perfect car? Yes, but with some terms.

First – get the right color. Our example arrived at our location in an ultra vibrant Mandarin metallic paint and instantly, we had something to say about it. The Bentley Flying Spur – in our minds – is meant for the elite, the executive, the discerning professional. It is NOT meant for the flashy, the motorsport enthusiast, the "cars & coffee" crew. There is very little justification for it to be painted in any color besides black, white, grey, silver, perhaps a dark blue or maroon, and maybe on the rarest occasions, purple. The exterior should subtly convey royalty and exquisite taste, not scream "look at me" or grab attention from the masses.

The Bentley Flying Spur – in our minds – is meant for the elite, the executive, the discerning professional. It is NOT meant for the flashy, the motorsport enthusiast, the "cars & coffee" crew.

With that being said, how does the Flying Spur compare to its rivals like the Mercedes-Maybach S580 or the Rolls-Royce Ghost? That depends.

The Mercedes-Maybach is arguably even more discreet and understated, but could be almost too much so. Its price is considerably less – starts at just over $200,000 USD – but all things considered anyone shopping for one won't care much about the $80k USD delta. We think the styling of the Maybach is also less dramatic than the Flying Spur, even with the brand's signature two-toned paint job. We don't deny it's an incredible package and is a stunning choice for an ultra-premium limousine, but perhaps it's not our favorite of the trio.

The Rolls-Royce Ghost however puts up more of a fight. A "double-R" has stood the test of time – quite literally, since 1906 – as the most luxurious car on the road, and the latest iterations are no exception. Even under the supervision of BMW, modern day Rolls-Royce vehicles demand attention and envy with its bold looks and prominent stature. The interiors match the exteriors with lavish trimmings, and the gadgets are cutting edge. Comfort is beyond describable and you'd be hard pressed to find fault in the cabin's build quality. Truth be told, if we were comparing apples to apples, at similar costs we'd have a hell of a task choosing between the Ghost and the Flying Spur.

But perhaps that's the point. The consumer who has the opportunity – and more importantly the money – to choose a Flying Spur is making a statement with its image, one that is actually not the obvious choice like the Rolls-Royce. In a society – and on a website like Hypebeast – where image is everything, the Bentley Flying Spur Speed is our pick of choice if you're looking for the ultra sedan. And you can spec it however you want, ...so as long as you paint it black.

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