Photo: Bentley
The 2018 run of the Pikes Peak Hill Climb would go down in history as a very lucrative one, with more than one record being broken by this year’s competitors.
Volkswagen, upon its return to the climb following a 30 years absence, managed not only to beat the record for electric vehicles, but also set the all-time record for the climb regardless of the means of propulsion: 7:57:148 minutes.
Just as parent company Volkswagen, Bentley too set out to beat a record. In its case, that record of 12:35.61 was the one set by Range Rover and, just as in VW’s case, the attempt succeeded. The SUVS success makes the score 2-0 in favor of the Germans, competing against all others.
The Bentayga SUV with which Bentley broke the record was driven by Rhys Millen, the very same man whose record the I.D, R electric VW broke in the electric car class. This time working for the Germans, Millen set a new target time for SUVs of 10:49.9, averaging 66.5 mph (107 km/h).
Bentley said before the run it worked for six months on getting the SUV ready for the climb. Even so, the most changes were made to the car’s weight, which was reduced by removing 300 kg of interior trim.
Additional tweaks to the adaptive air suspension and a 48V electric active anti-roll control also helped Millen make his record run.
“To take a luxury SUV with minimal modifications and be able to drive up this course in under 11 minutes is a huge testament to the performance and level of engineering in the Bentayga,” said Millen in a statement.
“I had a great run – the car was planted all the way up and gave me the confidence I needed to push hard. I’m delighted to take the SUV record for Bentley and for everyone that’s been involved in this project.”
Just as parent company Volkswagen, Bentley too set out to beat a record. In its case, that record of 12:35.61 was the one set by Range Rover and, just as in VW’s case, the attempt succeeded. The SUVS success makes the score 2-0 in favor of the Germans, competing against all others.
The Bentayga SUV with which Bentley broke the record was driven by Rhys Millen, the very same man whose record the I.D, R electric VW broke in the electric car class. This time working for the Germans, Millen set a new target time for SUVs of 10:49.9, averaging 66.5 mph (107 km/h).
Bentley said before the run it worked for six months on getting the SUV ready for the climb. Even so, the most changes were made to the car’s weight, which was reduced by removing 300 kg of interior trim.
Additional tweaks to the adaptive air suspension and a 48V electric active anti-roll control also helped Millen make his record run.
“To take a luxury SUV with minimal modifications and be able to drive up this course in under 11 minutes is a huge testament to the performance and level of engineering in the Bentayga,” said Millen in a statement.
“I had a great run – the car was planted all the way up and gave me the confidence I needed to push hard. I’m delighted to take the SUV record for Bentley and for everyone that’s been involved in this project.”
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