Bentley‘s Flying Spur Speed has set a winter lap record at the world’s most northerly active race circuit – the Drivecenter Arena in Fällfors, northern Sweden, 160km from the Arctic Circle.
On the 3.3km track covered in 305mm of ice and snow, the Flying Spur Speed completed laps in under three minutes. The best time was 2:58 – the quickest any vehicle has lapped the facility in winter conditions. The Flying Spur’s variable four-wheel-drive system and rear-wheel steering combined to enable outstanding agility in the conditions – peak speed was 193km/h on the 450m straight.
The car features an Ultra Performance Hybrid powertrain and advanced chassis systems. An advanced 600PS 4.0-liter twin-turbo V8 is combined with a 190PS electric motor integrated within the 8-speed dual-clutch transmission. In Sport Mode, the powertrain deploys 782PS and 1,000Nm, with the instant torque of the e-motor reportedly complementing the charismatic cross-plane beat of the V8.
In pure EV mode, the e-motor provides 190PS and 450Nm of torque, while the 25.9kWh battery offers up to 76km of usable electric-only range (on the EU drive cycle). Together, the V8 and e-motor provide the latest Flying Spur with a total range of 829km. Full electric mode can be deployed at speeds of up to 140km/h, with throttle applications of up to 75%.
The Bentley Performance Active Chassis is standard on the Flying Spur Speed. The system includes Bentley Dynamic Ride and All-Wheel Steering, and an electronically controlled limited slip differential. A new generation of ESC software allows drivers to select different driving modes while maintaining reliable traction in various conditions. The vehicle’s performance record was achieved with the system fully deactivated.
With the latest car’s rear-biased weight distribution of 48.3 : 51.7, the chassis systems and ESC have a mechanically optimized platform on which to provide the final refinement. The system uses active torque vectoring front to rear through a center differential, and precision vectoring across each axle using the brakes, to provide exceptional traction in all conditions.
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