2011 Bentley Gtc 80-11 Limited Edition 11k Miles on 2040-cars

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VW Group plan puts Porsche in charge of a 'super-premium' division

An Automobile report looks into what's happening on the organizational and technical sides of the Volkswagen Group, and what those changes could mean for the premium brands. The wide-angle view is that Porsche appears to have been anointed to "coordinate the future activities" at Audi, Bentley, Bugatti and Lamborghini. Audi would cede Lamborghini guardianship to Stuttgart, and Ducati — via a new concern called Ducati Enterprises — would become the shepherd for VW's other Italian investments. Executives target Jan. 1, 2019, to complete the reshuffle. VW wants to save a boodle by tying up four of its five top-tier brands, and putting the one with the highest ROI in charge. Porsche, within its own house, wants to reduce expenditures by $2.3 billion per year over for four years, the savings already earmarked for improving internal processes like R&D and production. Having Porsche share those gains as well as lead development of platforms, components and future-tech strategies for the sister sports car brands could benefit everyone. In the near-term, the brands have their own plans: Bugatti CEO Stephan Winkelmann is said to want a Chiron Superleggera, a roofless and "completely reskinned" Chiron Aperta, and a track-only Chiron SS. The Superleggera could take the Chiron Sport's and Divo's Jenny Craig routines even further. The Aperta seems a natural successor to the Veyron Grand Sport, a natural evolution of the recently introduced Sky View roof, and a reskin might include numerous Divo cues. It's also said Bugatti's considering "an all-electric high-end model" in conjunction with Porsche, Rimac, and Dallara, but name one supercar or hypercar manufacturer that isn't considering a lightning-fast EV. Lamborghini, deep into work on follow-ups for the Huracan and Aventador, might get a bit of a bump with the new plan. The carbon "monofuselage" for the next V12 flagship is said to be too far developed and too complex to scrap. It puts two electric motors on the front axle, batteries in the middle, and a naturally aspirated V12 with around 770 horsepower plus another e-motor with 402 horsepower in back. The Huracan is said to get a version of the same carbon architecture at the moment, but the corporate reorganization might press pause on it. Automobile says options include continuing the Huracan/ Audi R8 twinning, but that depends on Audi saying "Ja" to a third-gen R8 with Lamborghini bones.

Bentley to cut 1,000 jobs in Britain

Luxury carmaker Bentley is cutting about 1,000 jobs in the United Kingdom amid the ongoing coronavirus outbreak, the BBC reported late on Thursday. The cuts at the Volkswagen-owned brand are expected to be announced on Friday, according to the report. The carmaker is likely to offer workers the chance to take voluntary redundancy, the report added. Bentley, founded in the UK in 1919, has restarted production at its northern English Crewe factory, where it builds thousands of luxury models. However, the shutdown of its UK production due to the virus outbreak has hurt the company. Earlier on Thursday, Aston Martin, another luxury carmaker, said it planned to shed 500 jobs as it seeks to bring its cost base into line with reduced sports car production levels. Volkswagen and Bentley did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for comment late on Thursday. Related Video:    

Bentley builds a Continental GT as tribute to the car that inspired the model

Bentley is staying quite busy with its tribute models. It's built yet another 2023 Continental GT, in Azure trim, that's based on a notable past model. But unlike the Bathurst cars, this one appears to be just for Bentley, and it's based on a much older car: a 1953 R-Type Continental. More specifically, it's based on the 1953 R-Type Continental Bentley keeps in its historic fleet. It's a car that was purchased by the company in 2001 and has been maintained and preserved. The R-Type Continental is an important model for Bentley for a couple of reasons. It's a neat model on its own as a coupe version of the R-Type sedan that got a relatively light aluminum body, and its 4.6-liter straight-six could propel the Continental to nearly 120 mph. But it also was the inspiration for the first-generation Continental GT launched in 2003. So this special Continental GT Azure brings everything full circle. It's painted Old English White with a Cricket Ball leather interior to match the white-over-red of the '53 example. Bentley says the Burr Walnut wood trim with boxwood inlays was given a natural finish lacquer to match the aged wood on the old car. And as an Azure, this Continental GT comes with a variety of comfort-oriented features such as the active anti-roll bars and ultra-adjustable seats with massage. Under the hood is the standard twin-turbo 4.0-liter V8 making 542 hp. Related video: