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New Bentley boss nixes any new sports cars in its money-losing lineup

Adrian Hallmark took over the helm at Bentley on February 1 this year. Volkswagen poached him from Jaguar, where he headed the brand's global strategy. Or perhaps we should say re-poached him, since Hallmark served as Bentley's board member in charge of sales and marketing from 1999 to 2005, and helped guide the original Continental GT to market. He's now responsible getting Bentley in better shape financially and sales-wise, and positioning it for growth. Among the products necessary to do that, Hallmark recently told Autocar that flashy coupes won't cut it. "I'll tell you what we won't be building," he said, "and that's sports cars." That means we can forget about the gorgeous EXP 10 Speed 6 coupe that had a rumored place in the lineup after a sub-Bentayga CUV, and the EXP 12 Speed 6e battery-electric convertible. Hallmark cited a few issues with the segment, the first being that the segment hasn't yet recovered from the recession, and the buyer demographic that's left goes up in age every year, clearly a losing game. The kinds of younger buyers who would buy Bentleys, athletes and entertainers, are deterred from the purchase by contractual limitations like injury clauses or aversion to paparazzi photos. As well, in China, wealthy buyers get SUVs or limousines, but Hallmark believes Bentley hasn't adopted the the proper strategy there to take advantage. This is far more than about sports cars for Bentley, though; a recent article in German newspaper Handelsblatt outlined a number of situations the carmaker needs to rectify, including the finding that Bentley's "losing money hand over fist instead of racking up the hefty margins more typical of the class." A German study claimed that whereas Ferrari makes around $80,000 on every car it sells, and Porsche makes a little more than $19,000 on each car (last year it was a little more than $17,000) Bentley loses a little more than $19,000 on each unit. The English manufacturer has posted an operating loss of roughly $92 million through the first six months of 2018, the latest figures in a decline that began in 2014. That financial timeline, however, coincides with Bentley's $1.1B investment in new technologies, which the carmaker cites as the reason for profitability woes.

Bentley Continental GT3 grows wings to conquer the Pikes Peak Hill Climb

Apparently, this is a Bentley. That may not be obvious at first glance on account of the … everything, but this winged beast does have a Bentley logo on it. You see, Bentley is headed on back to Pikes Peak for a third (and final) time. The companyÂ’s first two visits saw the production SUV record achieved with the Bentayga W12 and the outright production car record taken with the Continental GT. This time, Bentley is targeting the “Time Attack 1” record, and the Continental GT3 Pikes Peak is its steed of choice. Leading the car's superlative features is what Bentley claims to be “the biggest rear wing ever fitted to a Bentley.” We heartily approve. The aerodynamic package is fully in vogue with other cars built specifically for Pikes Peak. Maximum downforce is generated with the huge wing, a gigantic diffuser, two-plane splitter and aggressive dive planes. ItÂ’s more track rat than elegant race car with the numerous scoops and venting throughout. The exhaust cutouts just aft of the front wheels complete the hooligan package. This Continental may have Bentley lights on it, but the similarities between it and the road car donÂ’t go much further. Details about the engine are limited, but Bentley says itÂ’s a 4.0-liter turbocharged V8 racing engine, not a production V8 or W12. Modifications were made to make it more powerful for this Pikes Peak run, but Bentley also made adjustments for the fuel it will be running in the car. Instead of running this Continental on race fuel, itÂ’s going to be using biofuel-based gasoline. WeÂ’ve heard Porsche make waves about the potential of greener biofuels helping to drastically reduce emissions, and now Bentley is making some noise about the tech, too. In coordination with Porsche (all in the same VW Group house), Bentley is researching how it could use biofuels and “e-fuels” to potentially power both past and future Bentley cars. As of today, Bentley is saying that using these fuels could result in greenhouse gas emissions reductions of up to 85%. Put simply, thatÂ’s huge, if it can be made to work at a large scale. Bentley expressly states that this research into biofuels doesnÂ’t affect its plan to become an electric-only automaker by 2030. Instead, Bentley sees it as a way to allow the brandÂ’s past and current gasoline-powered vehicles to be driven far into the future — just over 80% of all Bentleys ever built are still on the road, according to BentleyÂ’s internal tracking.

Bentley will black out the Flying Spur's trim for $4,735

Just because a car brand is premium, and exclusive, and expensive does not mean it is immune to the most popular automotive trends. Like the Ram 1500, the Honda Pilot, and the Fiat 500L, the Bentley Flying Spur will now be offered in a specification with blacked-out parts.  Bentley introduced the third generation of the Flying Spur during summer 2019, and now that it's had some time to settle in, new options are starting to roll out. This exact package is called the Blackline. Not to be confused with Lexus Blackline models, or the Harley-Davidson FXS Blackline Softail.  Nearly all the brightwork on the exterior of the sport sedan has been darkened. This includes the Flying B hood ornament, the radiator vanes, the grilles, the side window surrounds, the lower door and rear door trim, the front and rear light bezels, the door handles, the wing vents, and the exhaust outlets.  The Flying Spur has black parts, but it is not completely blacked out. Buyers still have the option of picking between 17 standard colors and 13 "extended range" colors. The standard wheels on the Flying Spur Blackline are 21-inch (no, they're not all black) with the option for 22-inch Mulliner Driving Specification wheels. There is no mention of any changes to the interior. The Blackline package will be available on the Flying Spur soon for $4,735.