Living like a millionaire for 24 Hours: The Bentley Experiment

There’s nothing that sobers you up faster than being handed the keys to something worth more than your house… Thus began my first experience with the 2026 Bentley Bentayga Speed.

So how did I initially deal with the situation, accepting the keys from the delightful Bentley Australia PR team - calm, class and quiet confidence? Forget it – I went straight into panic mode.

My first thought: What if I crash it? I absolutely cannot afford to crash it. I can’t even afford to think about crashing it. Stop thinking about crashing it.

And yet, 10 minutes later, I’m out on the freeway, weaving between lanes doing my best Fast & Furious impression (within the legal parameters) – like some sort of budget Dom Toretto with a questionable moustache and an even more questionable grasp of physics.

Bentley calls this experience The Great Escape. Which I initially related to… the first escape was me trying to flee my own anxieties.

Next stop: lunch on a stunning rural estate in Tonimbuk, all industrial chic, sweeping landscapes and the kind of serenity that whispers, “you don’t belong here”.

The meal was fancy – the type of fancy where there are forks for things you didn’t know needed forks. Naturally, I mixed up my entrée and main cutlery in front of the actual Bentley chief of communications , who gave me a very posh, very ‘rich’ side eye.

To be fair, Wayne was a lovely guy whose love of Audi’s had me a little confused if I was at the right place. And whilst I should have been engaging in polite conversation about the twin-turbo V8 and titanium exhaust system (did I do it right?) I was too busy thinking about the whipped butter.

That butter…

That butter… I consumed more bread than is legally advisable for one human being.

Bentley doesn’t just give you a car to fang around in – they give you an experience. And, in true Bentley fashion, the experience has absolutely nothing to do with cars… at least not directly.

Enter: The Bentley Fragrance Tutorial.

I didn’t expect to have opinions on perfume, but there I was, sniffing my way through the Bentley fragrance lineup like a man trying to identify ‘notes’ beyond ‘smells good’.

Shockingly? The scents slapped. Hard. The old olfactory epithelium got a solid workout.

Not only were the fragrances legitimately great, but I walked out with a bottle – a personal souvenir so that, if I ever want to smell like a rich man again, I (technically) can.

Then came the main event: piloting the alarmingly fast and disturbingly loud 2026 Bentley Bentayga Speed through dynamic activities on Bentley’s secret Tonimbuk playground.

One particular moment is burned into my memory like seeing how many zeroes were on my home loan for the first time: flat-out acceleration for 50 metres… hitting 100km/h… then slamming the brakes.

Everyone else was exhilarated. And rightly so, something so large and luxurious has no right speeding up and slowing down with such vehemence.

Me? Had my eyes fully shut, white knuckling the steering wheel like I was entering the afterlife.
When we skidded to a stop, the instructor said, “Great job!”

I said, “Thanks, I didn’t see any of it.” Kind of like when I signed off on my mortgage with the bank.

Driving a Bentley for a day does things to a person. It changes your DNA. It raises your expectations for what a cabin should smell like, how leather should feel and how softly doors should make that thunk.

Even as a passenger, I felt like I was flying business class… or, more realistically for me, like what I imagine business class is like. Honestly, even Virgin Economy X feels like a stretch for my current financial trajectory.

But a boy can dream.

The Bentayga made me feel powerful. Important. Rich.

And then I got back into my Mitsubishi ASX and immediately felt like someone downgraded me from 4K Ultra HD back to VHS.

Driving a Bentley for the day didn’t just give me a thrill – it gave me a glimpse into a lifestyle. A lifestyle where your biggest concern isn’t petrol prices or parking inspectors, but whether your leather stitching matches your bespoke overnight bag.

Will I ever own a Bentayga?

Probably not.

Will I be smelling like a Bentley man for the next few weeks until that fragrance runs out?

Absolutely.

This experience was luxurious, chaotic, hilarious, heart-thumping and unexpectedly wholesome.

And the best part? I didn’t crash it (or cry). Not once.

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