It is, perhaps, astonishing to learn that the Bentley Bentayga has been around for one year short of a decade.

The first Bentaygas to roll off the production line were powered by the W12 engine followed, perhaps surprisingly, by a diesel version. These were joined, in order, by Mulliner, V8 and, finally hybrid models.

As car fans we are, perhaps, accustomed to the muted rumble of large-capacity engines beneath the long bonnets of our most luxurious motor vehicles and, for me at least, it’s hard to separate one from the other.

Separate them I must however, because this hybrid Bentley – like the Flying Spur I drove last year – is fitted with a relatively small 3.0-litre V6 assisted by an electric motor. This is just another step along the path to full electrification when we bid our final farewells to the internal combustion engine regardless of its capacity.

Despite the obvious harms that fossil fuels cause to our environment a part of me will lament their passing. I should add that my impending sense of loss does not blind me to the urgent need to tackle climate change.

So, I fully intend to enjoy what may well be the halcyon days of motoring while I can.

Sorry, I digress, so let's get back to the matter in hand and talk about Bentleys big SUV.

The design has changed little since it was launched almost 10 years ago. 1st generation SUV's, in my opinion of course, are often a little unresolved from a design perspective because of a desire to create an entirely new model while retaining a distinctive corporate identity.

This can often lead - -allow me to present the original BMW X5 as exhibit A - to awkward-looking, and dare I say ugly, first-gen models.

Bentley, with the Bentayga, managed to avoid this particular pitfall and created a car with elegant proportions, an imposing, instantly recognisable face and a dynamic, handsome coma profile that has required no more than a little tinkering around the edges since it was introduced to the world.

The cabin is as well appointed as you’d expect in a car that, if it was a house in the Garden of England, would attract a council tax bill that tops £2,000 a year. Open the door and the first thing that strikes you – gently, like being slapped with cotton wool – is the rich, warm scent of leather. That’s not a surprise as the cabin is swaddled in it. From the window sills to the door panels, the broad dashboard to the transmission tunnel, the steering wheel to the seats, there is absolutely oodles of the stuff. Anything that isn’t wrapped in leather is covered in a lustrous, beautifully finished in Open Pore Crown Cut Walnut, apparently.

The instrument binnacle features a large LCD screen so you’ll find the traditional analogue instruments presented here in digital form. You can change the configuration to display maps, media, or other information depending on what’s important to you.

A head-up display is optional, as is night vision – part of the Touring Specification – both of which I would recommend, and not just because they’re cool either. There’s nothing better, and safer, than receiving important information – speed and sat nav directions for example – in your line of sight.

There’s a 10.9in screen mounted in the dashboard. Apple CarPlay and Android Auto are both included. While both are welcome – I always turn to the latter for my infotainment needs – it also feels a bit generic for a car that costs £191,000. I’d hate it, I’m sure, but I can’t help feel disappointed that we’re not restricted to Bentley’s own, bespoke, solution. If they had one, that is.

Unless you want to save some cash for a little runaround it’s probably worth splashing out the £7,065 it costs to install the Naim for Bentley audio system. Yes, for us mere mortals it’s a lot of money but if you’ve got one of these on your shopping list it’s unlikely that cost will concern you and, for your cash, you’ll get 20 speakers and an ear-popping 1,720 watts of unrivalled audio reproduction, in a can! Albeit a beautifully appointed can.

The seats are beautifully sculpted and luxuriously comfortable. They, and the steering wheel, are electrically adjustable – it would be unseemly to have to crank your seat into position by hand after all – and, once you’ve got everything just as you like it there are few experiences to rival gazing down on the world passing you by in serene silence from the lavish confines of the Bentayga’s cabin.

If you would rather be driven than drive you’ll find accommodation in the back just as spectacular. The standard split-folding rear bench accommodates three but there is the option to go with a strict four-seater with a raised console-equipped transmission tunnel and reclining seats with massage function.

Perhaps, most importantly, there’s ample for room for adults, even of larger proportions, to get comfortable. All that luxury would be wasted otherwise.

While the Flying Spur Hybrid utilises a 2.9-litre petrol V6 Bentley have stuck with a 3.0-litre unit from the VW Group’s arsenal and that, combined with a 100kW electric motor, provides 449bhp. That’s quite a bit down on the V8, which boasts 542bhp – as well as the 2.9-litre engine – and it’s 5.s-second sprint to 62mph is almost a second slower but, and of course there’s a but, in order to replicate that kind of performance you’ll need to keep the battery charged.

The 18kWh (usable) lithium ion battery can be charged at a rate of 7.2kW/h, meaning it can be fully recharged in as little as two-and-a-half hours.

There is one small a caveat, a little fly in the ointment, a small cat among the pigeons, however, because without any power being sent from the electric motor you’re essentially left with a, relatively, small V6 hauling around a very heavy car crammed with tech, luxurious materials and a dead battery and, while it’s no slouch in those conditions, the engine has to work just that little bit harder which is a little at odds with the Bentayga’s otherwise relaxed, effortless demeanour.

The battery that should be good enough for about 25 miles on electric power alone. Keeping it charged is a necessity if you hope to get anywhere near the claimed 94.2mpg fuel economy figure.

Perhaps more significantly, the Bentayga Hybrid is ULEZ exempt. Yes, you read that right.

The Hybrid S driven here is equipped with the same uprated adaptive air suspension as the V8 model, which means damper rates increased by 15%. The packaging of the hybrid system means that there’s no room to accommodate Bentley’s Dynamic Ride active anti-roll bars and, as a result, it’s poised, nimble and precise, for a big, heavy luxury car with a high centre of gravity, that is.

Do you buy a car with your head or your heart? I suspect for a lot of people it’s a combination of the two in infinitely variable ratios.

That’s why I would rather have a V8 than an equally powerful hybrid V6, or why you might prefer a classic sports car to something a little more contemporary.

That’s why, as an overall luxury package it’s impossible to fault the Bentayga. The interior is palatial, opulent , and very, very comfortable. There’s a real sense of isolation cruising a motorway speeds such is the absence of intrusive noise from outside the cabin. It’s why it feels so special to own one.

It is also why, ironically, I think it’s the engine that proves to be the hybrid Bentayga’s biggest, possibly sole, weakness. Whether that’s going to concern potential buyers – at least for the time being – remains to be seen but, given that I’ve seen what’s possible with the Flying Spur, it’s surely only a matter of time before the Bentayga can no longer rest on its admittedly sizeable laurels.

Bentley Bentayga S Hybrid

Price: £191,000

As tested: £232,225

Powertrain: 2.9l V6 plus 100kWh electric motor

Transmission:

Max power: 449bhp

Max torque: 700Nm

0-62mph: 5.3sec

Max speed; 158mph (84mph electric only).

Economy: 94.2mpg (combined)

Emissions: 78g/km