2015 Bentley Flying Spur V8

2015 Bentley Flying Spur V8

Episode 3417
Auto Value and Bumper to BumperTire Rack "The Way Tire Buying Should Be"

Last year, the Bentley Flying Spur dropped Continental from its name, but it lost nothing when it came to showcasing British luxury performance motoring at its best. Well, this year it loses something else…4-cylinders from its signature W12 engine. So, let’s see if less turns out to be more. 

Yes folks, as much as we hate to admit it, sometimes you can have too much of a good thing. That’s where this 2015 Bentley Flying Spur V8 comes in. 

For some, 12-cylinders pumping in harmony to produce glorious amounts of power is just more than they can handle or perhaps wish to pay for. 

But this is no lightweight V8 we’re talking about here. It’s Audi’s aluminum 4.0-liter twin-turbo unit that, after some unique Bentley tweaks, performs some internal combustion magic of its own, pulling 500-horsepower and 487 lb-ft. of torque. That may be over 100-horsepower less than the W12, but with 100-pounds of weight also removed from the front end, it should translate to a more enjoyable experience at the track.

So we “suited up” in proper Bentley fashion and made haste to our test facility. And unless you’ve recently driven the W12 Flying Spur, you’d be hard pressed to notice a difference in acceleration, as this thing just flat takes off. There’s gobs of power off the line, and rear-biased all-wheel-drive to apply it.

Power continues to build in a very linear fashion, and 60 miles-per-hour arrives in just 4.6-seconds. That’s only a tenth off  our time in the W12. The 8-speed automatic transmission provided smooth and fast shifts, and in 12.9-seconds, we were at the end of the ¼-mile with the needle pointing at 111 on the speedo. So, unless you absolutely will settle for nothing but the best or are always in a real hurry, there’s not much need for the 12. 

At 5,300-pounds plus, there’s still a lot of weight to hustle through the cones. But this Flying Spur does so with surprising agility, though you want to make sure suspension is at its firmest setting to keep body roll at a minimum. You can find both under and over steer should you go looking, but initiating either requires some very aggressive inputs with the wheel or with the throttle. 

Even more amazingly, bringing this 2½-ton dreamliner to a halt from 60 happens in just 107-feet, with smooth and steady stops that belie the frictional ferociousness that is transpiring behind this car’s 21-inch painted alloys. 

Though technically no longer part of the Continental family, the Flying Spur sees similar exterior embellishments to last year’s Continental GT Coupe V8. That means it’ll take a keen or perhaps distinguished eye to spot the dark finish to the grilles, red background of the flying B logo, and figure-8 shaped exhaust finishers.

There’s always lots to love when you’re talking about Bentley interiors. Now, we can’t say this Newmark tan motif would be our first choice in color as we prefer to leave the saddle-brown theme to our pickups, but material quality and finish are every bit as exquisite as you would expect.  

Amenities include beautiful Eucalyptus wood veneer, picnic trays, Naim for Bentley Premium Audio, refrigerated bottle cooler, massaging seats, full length center console with seating for just two in the back, dual LCD screens, and a remote to control most of the cars functions from the back seat. 

If you’re smart enough to send the chauffeur home for the day and take up residence in the front seat, you’ll agree that this may be the best handling close to 3-ton sedan out there. It does indeed feel massive, but highly capable and stable. Just plan ahead a bit for turns as there’s no dartiness to it. 

While this basic chassis has been around for quite some time, and we wonder just how much further corporate parent Volkswagen can go with it, does the average luxury buyer really care about any of that? Probably not, and you won’t either. Just relax and enjoy the ride. 

Despite the smaller V8 engine, there’s still a gas guzzler tax, as Government Fuel Economy Ratings come in at 14-City, 24-Highway, and 17-Combined. Our average of 18.0 miles-per-gallon of Premium was around 8% better than we achieved in the W12 Flying Spur. That still makes for a very poor Energy Impact Score however, burning through 19.4-barrels of oil per year while expelling 8.5-tons of CO2. 

Priced about $20,000 under the W12 at $200,245, it may be the everyman’s Flying Spur, but it’s still not for every man or woman; more for those with the necessary “funds” be they trust, hedge, or otherwise.  

Much as in the Continental GT Coupe, the V8 engine in the 2015 Bentley Flying Spur sedan makes for a better overall car. Sure, in the luxury realm there is always an accepted space for prestigious overkill. But as far as we’re concerned, this is a case of less is more. 

Specifications

  • Engine: 4.0 liter
  • Horsepower: 500
  • Torque: 487 lb-ft.
  • 0-60 mph: 4.6 seconds
  • 1/4 mile: 12.9 seconds @ 111 mph
  • EPA: 14 mpg city/ 24 mpg highway
  • Energy Impact: 19.4 barrels of oil/yr
  • CO2 Emissions: 8.5 tons/yr
2024 Audi RS 7 Performance 1

2024 Audi RS 7 Performance

Up For Grand Touring Around A Racetrack

Episode 4329
Auto Value and Bumper to BumperTire Rack "The Way Tire Buying Should Be"

In recent years, Audi has done an increasingly better job at merging luxury, high tech and sportiness equally into all of their vehicles, but that doesn’t mean they all have the same priorities. So, if you’re wondering what this car is all about… well, it’s right there in the name, the Audi RS 7 Performance!

First and foremost, the 2024 Audi RS 7 Performance is absolutely fantastic looking. A gorgeous car from all angles. But this posh performer is a lot more than just a visual treat. Under its silky skin lies a menacing sounding V8 that delivers insane amounts of power and, as we discovered, a gloriously intoxicating driving experience.

RS elements added to Audi’s S7 five-door coupe include new aero treatments with a matte gray finish and silver 21-inch Audi Sport wheels. Those silver wheels are wrapped with 275 Continental summer performance tires and allow for seeing plenty of the enormous brake rotors with black-painted calipers. Up front, there’s a wide grille inhaling all kinds of air and headlights with uniqueness that’s pure Audi. This five-door coupe with frameless door windows speaks a true hardtop design.

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Now that we’ve gotten that out of our system, time to hit the corners of Savannah’s Roebling Road Raceway, and it’s been quite some time since we’ve had anything here or on any road course that exhibited this much body roll. It didn’t matter what drive mode we had dialed in, it just liked to roll. You could sense that soft suspension in our acceleration runs too. Bystanders got a clear view of a lot of its hardware, thanks to major rear-end squatting as it exploded off the line. Those explosions resulted in a quick 3.7-second trip to 60 miles-per-hour and full quarter-mile runs of 11.9 seconds at 118 miles-per-hour. Fast indeed, though we’re sure both times would improve in warmer temps than our 40-degree test day.

Drive modes have been recalibrated and shifts by the eight-speed Tiptronic in Dynamic Mode are quick. Indeed, noticeably quicker and firmer than in the RS6 wagon we tested just a few months ago without the “performance” treatment. Quattro all-wheel drive is standard.

We’ve never experienced a car that can feel this soft yet was absolutely point-and-shoot through corners.

The driving force for that acceleration is a 4.0-liter twin-turbo V8 cranking out an additional 30 horsepower from the standard RS 7 thanks to installing bigger turbos. That makes for a 621-horsepower rating, with an even more impressive boost in torque from 590 to 627 lb-ft. And Audi was kind enough to remove a little sound deadening material so we can appreciate it even more through the optional RS sport exhaust system.

For what is really a Grand Tourer built for blasting you away on luxurious adventures, the RS 7 performance is amazingly track capable. Steering is very direct with great feel, and all four wheels are engaged in the process. They’re connected to a new mechanical self-locking center differential that is not only capable of handling the additional power but is lighter and quicker to respond. Chassis software has been recalibrated to make it all work together seamlessly. There must be some serious engineering wizardry happening in the RS-tuned air suspension as we’ve never experienced a car that can feel this soft yet was absolutely point-and-shoot through corners. Brakes were truly phenomenal too; there was some significant nosedive happening, but no wandering or fading no matter how hard we worked them.

And yes, it’s hard to call this actual work, considering this work environment is far from hostile. Absolutely nothing has been compromised when it comes to delivering the luxury car experience you expect from a six-figure Audi. Whether it’s the fabulous real metal, leather, and detailed woven carbon-fiber materials or the fine stitch-work and the always impressive comprehensive digital gauge display, the RS 7 performance feels truly special inside.

2024 Audi RS 7 Performance Dash
2024 Audi RS 7 Performance Shifter
2024 Audi RS 7 Performance Seat
2024 Audi RS 7 Performance Trunk
2024 Audi RS 7 Performance Engine
2024 Audi RS 7 Performance Dash2024 Audi RS 7 Performance Shifter2024 Audi RS 7 Performance Seat2024 Audi RS 7 Performance Trunk2024 Audi RS 7 Performance Engine

The front seats were supremely comfortable and were only mildly bolstered yet held us in place just fine out on the track. Plenty of room for rear seat passengers too, and there’s even a great 24.6 cubic-feet of cargo space with hatchback versatility. Less practical is all touchscreen all the time for just about every cockpit control.

Government Fuel Economy Ratings are 14 City, 22 Highway, and 17 Combined. That’s a below average Energy Impact Score of 17.5 barrels of yearly oil use with 8.8 tons of CO2 emissions.

Pricing starts at $129,490, and Audi knows they have a good thing going with the RS 7 performance; so much so, it’s now the only RS 7.

So, could they have just made the RS 7 better instead of tacking “performance” onto the name? Sure, but there’s just something about adding performance to a car name that draws people in. And when it backs it up by delivering more actual performance, well, that’s what we call a win-win. We’d be happy to run some victory laps in the 2024 Audi RS 7 Performance anytime.

Specifications

  • Engine: 4.0-liter twin-turbo V8
  • Horsepower: 621
  • 0-60 mph: 3.7 seconds
  • EPA: 14 City | 22 Highway | 17 Combined
  • Transmission: 8-speed automatic
  • Torque: 627 lb-ft.
  • 1/4 Mile: 11.9 seconds at 118 mph
  • Starting Price: $129,490