Road test: 2015 Bentley Mulsanne Speed

The British marque’s latest luxury V8 flyer.

The Bentley Mulsanne Speed has the most torque of any car currently in production, hitting 1,100Nm at 1,750rpm. Courtesy Newspress

This Bentley is a 2.5-tonne gargantuan – a stately home on wheels that produces so much torque that, with one pump of your right foot, sends the space-time continuum out of whack. From inside its palatial cabin, it’s the epitome of serenity, no matter what paces you put its engine through, while from outside, all you can hear when the taps are opened is a glorious roar that could only ever be emitted by an old-school V8. Yes, the Mulsanne Speed is a superb, life-affirming mobile contradiction, and for the fortunate few who will get to own one, it will be the distillation of everything that has ever made Bentley special.

It has been five years since I last drove a Mulsanne, and while my recollections of the driving experience are admittedly scant, I cannot recall thinking for even a split second that it was lacking in pace or grace. But certain owners – as is their wont – fed back to Bentley that they required something extra. Perhaps a dollop more torque, a soupçon more speed and maybe a more focused driving experience. This was something of a surprise to Bentley, albeit a welcome one. It turned out that people wanted to actually drive their Mulsannes, rather than sit in the back.

So they got what they asked for: a Mulsanne that offers a little bit more of everything. The 6.75L twin-turbocharged V8 has been re-engineered with a completely new combustion system, new variable valve timing and reworked turbos, the net result of which is a maximum torque figure that, now the Bugatti Veyron has ceased production, makes it the world’s twistiest car. A mere number tells relatively little, but try to get your head around 1,100Nm of torque, available from a relatively pedestrian 1,750rpm. The effect during mid-range acceleration is almost beyond description, but like Bentleys of old, it’s comparable to a locomotive – unstoppable, monumental, effortless forward movement.

It’s almost irrelevant, but the Mulsanne Speed’s maximum rate of knots is 305kph and it will crack the 100kph mark from a standstill in 4.9 seconds. Can you imagine the sheer physical forces at play to make something that weighs so much move so quickly? Peak power is 537hp, but it’s that crushing wave of torque that sets the car apart from its luxury brethren – nothing in its sector comes anywhere close.

It’s this extra connectivity ­between car and driver that makes the Speed such a viable alternative from the standard car. You want to drive it; to experience the sensations from behind its beautifully crafted steering wheel. You want it to be your foot squeezing the throttle, not your chauffeur’s. But for the times when you don’t want to, or can’t, be at the controls yourself, the Speed still offers all the refinement and serenity of a regular Mulsanne, enabling you to get on with work, watch a film or entertain guests – whatever it is you want to do in its opulent rear quarters.

It’s only when the Speed is put into Sport mode that it changes character. That’s when it hunkers down on its adaptive suspension and gets all snarly, ­although it’s still more exquisite than practically any other luxury car even when in full attack mode. It will never be a circuit superstar, obviously – it’s just too big and heavy – but its straight-line pace is something you’ll never tire of.

As I tackle some epic, sweeping desert roads between Dubai and our destination in Ras Al Khaimah, past Big Red, and peel off the main road to enjoy the vistas afforded by some of the UAE’s finest secondary routes, it’s safe to say that few cars would be better suited to this kind of journey. Everything – everything – about the Mulsanne Speed reeks of handcrafted indulgence, and sensory delights come thick and fast. There’s a sensuality to the way even the glass-fronted push controls feel to the touch and how everything that looks like stainless steel is exactly that. There’s an authenticity and ­craftsmanship here that’s missing from even Rolls-Royces.

Naturally, there’s little to tell the outside world that you’re driving a Speed. There’s no badging, apart from a discreet script on the side vents, but obsessives might notice the bespoke alloy wheels (only available in 21-inch rims to cope with the grunt), the darkened mesh grille and the blackened surrounds to the headlamp elements, adding an air of menace. Like everything with this extraordinary automobile, the visual nuances are an exercise in pure class.

Little more than 1,000 Mulsannes are produced each year, making it an incredibly rare mode of transport – and the Speed will be much rarer still. On that basis alone, it makes a watertight case for itself, but the fact is it’s the quintessential Bentley. And that elevates it from the mere mortals, sealing its status as one of the motoring world’s true greats.

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