Bentley Boosts bid for Ultra-Luxury Crown

[mgescuro]

http://www.thecarconnection.com/index.asp?article=8549

Bentley Boosts Bid for Ultra-Lux Crown
VW’s luxury brand is defying gravity in a sluggish sales segment.


The ultra-luxury end of the automotive market was long an exclusive club, with few manufacturers competing for a limited, extraordinarily affluent clientele. But in recent years, there's been an explosion of offerings, including new brand names, such as DaimlerChrysler's Maybach and Volkswagen's reborn Bugatti. So far, with relatively rare exception, the market has responded with a yawn. Maybach and the segment's icon, Rolls-Royce, have fallen far short of sales expectations with new models. The notable exception has been Bentley, Rolls' longtime sibling and now a subsidiary of Volkswagen AG.

Demand for the new Bentley Continental GT, a $150,000 luxury sports coupe, has been so strong that the automaker is struggling under the weight of a 10-month backlog. It will soon expand production from its home plant in Crewe, England, to Dresden, Germany , sharing the same assembly line with VW's slow-selling Phaeton sedan.

Last year, Bentley sales - which include older models, such as the Arnage - topped 6000, an all-time record. And with the expansion of production capacity and the addition of the new GT spin-off, the four-door Continental Flying Spur, sales are likely to nudge 8000 this year. That's getting close to the longer-term target of 10,000 cars a year.

"We could easily do 50,000" by moving down-market, much like the high-line British marque, Aston Martin, is doing, Bentley CEO Franz-Josef Paefgen suggested during an interview at the launch of the Flying Spur. But he was quick to add that "It is not a question of how many we could make, but how many we will choose to make."

Balancing the checkbooks

There's a delicate balance at work here, Bentley officials caution, between volume and exclusivity. So far, the Continental GT seems to be riding the line quite successfully. It has become a must-have among those who can literally afford to drive anything they want, including the likes of basketball legend Michael Jordan, who calls his GT his favorite car.

The sporty coupe's chrome, crosshatch grille has become something of an icon among bling babies, appearing in rap videos and on red carpets. That's not exactly the tea and crumpets set one traditionally associates with British luxury cars. Indeed, Bentley's new lineup seems to be connecting with all sorts of folks who normally wouldn't be found in a formal luxury sedan, such as the big Arnage, but Adrian Hallmark the board member in charge of sales, is happy to take their money.

"I don't have to love every customer or appreciate what they do," he said with a broad grin. "We try not to sell to despots and terrorists, but other than that, I can't choose our customers."

Perhaps the most telling indication of Bentley's current appeal is the fact that look-alike grilles are one of the year's hot aftermarket item. They conveniently bolt onto another hot product, the decidedly more downmarket Chrysler 300 sedan.

(Those familiar with Bentley might be wondering why the classic hood ornament has been replaced with a simple and uninspiring Bentley badge. That's the result of new European Union pedestrian impact laws. But the traditional Flying B will be back, Hallmark promises. A sophisticated hydraulic system is under development that will drop the hood ornament out of the way in the event of an accident. And yes, it too is apparently a year from introduction.)

With the success of the Continental GT, and the warm early reviews given the Flying Spur, it might be easy for Bentley to abandon its older, more traditional models. But even though it's selling less than 1000 copies of the Arnage each year, the sedan remains, at $220,000, a highly profitably part of the portfolio, according to Hallmark. And it draws a distinctly different sort of customer than the GT or Flying Spur, somebody looking for what might be called the ultimate statement of success.

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I think that is one of the most oddball comments ever said -- highlighted in red. Because that is EXACTLY what Bentley did. They hacked off $100,000 and sold the Continental GT and Flying Spur. I mean... why would you buy a mere S600 for $125K, when you could get the more exclusive Bentley for about the same price???

Furthermore, the Continental GT and Flying Spur are platform-mates of the A8L and Phaeton. Not exactly the more "exclusive" vehicles anymore -- except for name.

I certainly hope Cadillac accelerates ULS development and smacks that Bentley around a bit!!!

[jinushaun]

The Conti GT is hot. Smart move on Bentley's part. Same with Aston moving down market. Ultra luxury and supercars are too small a market.