When you set out to investigate the plush and highly specialised nature of the new, longer Bentley Bentayga EWB, it’s hard to know whether to start at the front of this mighty machine, or the rear.
In the driver’s seat, you have access to new standards of ride and road ability brought by the combination of a 180mm-longer wheelbase than the regular Bentley Bentayga and an all-new four-wheel steering system that improves both manoeuvrability and high-speed stability.
In the rear – after you’ve stepped through a bigger and now power-assisted door – you get access to the most spacious super-luxury accommodation going in a production car, even against the long-wheelbase Range Rover and Rolls-Royce Cullinan.
There’s a choice of three seating set-ups: a conventional three-seat bench, a novel two-plus-one layout (two big seats and a minimal central perch) or, as in our test car, so-called Airline Seating that consists of two multi-adjustable throne-like rear buckets, which are far better and more widely configurable than those offered by any airline we know.
Overlaying the lot is a new concentration on reducing noise, vibration and harshness, especially in the car’s rear compartment – not that the shorter Bentayga model is any slouch in that department. But this new EWB is now very much Bentley’s flagship, and the best choice for those who prefer to be chauffeur driven.