2006 6.0l Auto Moonbeam on 2040-cars

Auto blog

Volkswagen Group's Vision 2030 strategy could bring revolution to the brands

One would expect a corporate plan called "Vision 2030," looking 11 years ahead through wildly tumultuous times, to involve great change and numerous forks in numerous roads. According to Automobile's breakdown of Volkswagen's path forward, though, the plans contain some lurid potential surprises. The ultimate aim is return on investment, and that means ruthless reorganization of a conglomerate with eight primary car brands, two car sub-brands, and Ducati motorcycles. The first two Vision 2030 cornerstones Automobile mentions are near boilerplate: Production network restructuring, and "streamlining of key technologies." The latter two are the ones that could upend what we know as the Volkswagen Group: focusing on the Group's core brands — meaning Audi, Porsche, and VW — and transitioning to EVs, autonomy, and other mobility solutions. Based on the report, a quote from Audi's CTO referring to the Audi brand could cover how the Group plans to handle all of its brands: "We need to find a sustainable solution for the indefinite transition period until EVs eventually take over." The boutique divisions adjacent to carmaking, Ducati and Italdesign, look likely to be spun off. For the halo car brands — Bentley, Bugatti, and Lamborghini — apparently shareholders want double-digit returns on investment, and the trio doesn't have long to hit the target. One eyebrow raiser is when the report states, "Bugatti is tipped to be gifted to [ex-VW Group Chairman] Ferdinand Piech." Piech fathered the Veyron during his tenure at VW, and it was thought he commissioned the La Voiture Noire, but he's lately stepped so far back from VW that he sold all his shares in the Group. Automobile quoted a senior strategist as saying of money-losing Bentley, "Why invest on a backward-looking enterprise when you can support a trendsetter? A proud history and excellent craftmanship alone don't cut it anymore." We guess no one at Ferrari, McLaren, or even Porsche got that memo. Bentley is reportedly close to being put in time out, and if brand CEO Adrian Hallmark can't right the Crewe ship, the hush-hush Plan B is to prop the Flying B up enough to lure a buyer. As for Lamborghini, caught between two masters at Audi and Porsche, even record-breaking numbers at the Italian supercar maker barely staved off sacrilege. It's said that VW brand CEO Herbert Diess considered putting a 5.0-liter Porsche V8 into the Aventador successor.

Set your Bentley Bentayga apart with Mountain Marquetry trim

One of the best things about the ordering process at Bentley has got to be the sheer level of customization on offer. We're especially fond of the wood veneers. But if none of them meet your high standards, the company's Mulliner division now offers this intricate Mountain Marquetry dashboard design. The hand-crafted artistic vista depicts the Roque Bentayga, the mountain formation located on Gran Canaria in Spain's Canary Islands from which the company took the name for its new sport utility vehicle. The time-intensive installation is made of 32 layers of wood taken from six different species of tree. We don't know just what woods Bentley's artisans use to weave the wooden tapestry, but as it is, the Bentayga alone is available with an array of seven such options, including chestnut, eucalyptus, ash, madrona (a type of Ericaceae indigenous to our West Coast), two types of burr walnut, and a piano-lacquered walnut. If you're not into the whole wood thing, Bentley has also been known to offer trim in alternative materials like carbon fiber, aluminum, and even stone. It goes without saying, of course, that all of this comes at a price. We wouldn't be surprised to discover that said price could get you an entire second automobile. But cost is seldom an object for many Bentley customers who want their automobile to stand out from all the other Bentleys parked at the country club, racquet club, yacht club, or whatever other kind of club the rest of us probably haven't even heard of. Related Video: News Source: Bentley via YouTube Bentley Luxury Videos bentley bentayga Mulliner

Bentley helped a customer outfit a yacht to match their Continental GT

Luxury automakers continue to expand into new areas and offer new services to provide their clients custom, high-end products. Sometimes that involves fancy apartments or garages. In the case of this Bentley Continental GT buyer, they wanted their new yacht to match their nautical-themed luxury coupe. So, Bentley and yacht-builder Contest Yachts obliged. The yacht is a 59-foot Contest 59 CS, and the Continental GT is the V8 variant. The car features a dark blue exterior and "Hotspur" red leather, "Linen" quilted leather and light-stained wood trim in the interior. The yacht features nearly the same specification with a slightly different paint color on the outside, but actual leather sourced from Bentley to trim the interior. The wood used for the bed, cabinetry and other parts of the yacht's cabin closely match the car's trim, too. Bentley says this is a one-off, and indeed, you're likely not going to see another pairing exactly like this. But we suspect that as long a client is willing to put forth the undisclosed amount of money, they would happily collaborate with Contest or another company to custom match a car and a yacht. We wouldn't be surprised if they'd be willing to help match more things, like a private jet and a car. Just have a big enough pocketbook and the options are just about limitless. Related video: