Bentley Bentayga EWB is Goodwood’s fastest tow car
Flagship luxury SUV unofficially sets a new course record for car and trailer combos up the Goodwood hill climbBentley set a peculiar new record at this year’s Goodwood Festival of Speed when a Bentayga EWB running on biofuel broke the hill climb course record for a tow vehicle.
With its tank filled exclusively with straw-based fuel, the flagship SUV hauled 2500kg of hay up the hill climb on a specially prepared Ifor Williams trailer in one minute and 21 seconds, apparently showcasing the true power and potential of sustainably-sourced biofuels.
Every Bentley vehicle that took to the hill over the four-day event was running on the waste straw-derived fuel, which the brand says reduces ‘well-to-wheel’ vehicle emissions by 85 per cent.
The 2.5 tonnes of hay lugged up the hill was enough to create almost 1800km worth of fuel for the Bentayga EWB’s twin-turbo 4.0-litre petrol V8 (404kW/770Nm), which can run on the fossil-free go juice without any mechanical or ECU modifications.
“During the production process waste biomass is broken down using fermentation, leading to the creation of ethanol,” Bentley said in a statement.
“Dehydration of the ethanol converts it to ethylene, which can then be transformed into gasoline through the process of oligomerisation – chaining short hydrocarbon molecules together to produce longer, more energy-dense ones.
“The fuel produced is 100 per cent renewable and delivers an estimated 85 per cent reduction in CO2 impact compared with conventional gasoline.”
Undermining the feat, however, is the fact Bentley will become an EV-only manufacturer by 2030 and the fact the run was completed during the ‘build phase’ of the event before festivities got underway, which means the record is unofficial.
The iconic luxury British marque says this was done for “safety reasons” and acknowledges the record run is unofficial, but still championed both the Bentayga EWB and the biofuel it was run on by displaying the vehicle and trailer in the Cathedral Paddock at the festival, accompanied by a short film recapping the run.
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