The recession has not been kind to most luxury car manufacturer’s. After all, with the economy on a downturn, even those who can still afford luxuries shy away from frivolous spending.

While the recession was the final nail in Maybach‘s coffin, Bentley has soldiered on and managed to survive the tough economic climate. Not only did Bentley survive, they have bounced back strongly in 2011.

Global sales for Bentley rose by 37% in 2011, totaling 7003 deliveries to customers. In December, they moved 1059 cars, which is not only their best month since the recession, but also the second best month in the history of the company.

The two big reason’s the brand was so successful in 2011 are the U.S. and Chinese markets. The U.S. market retains the top spot, as the biggest market for this British brand. 2021 new Bentley’s were sold to American homes in 2011, while 1839 units were delivered in China.

In Germany, demand for Bentley’s increased by 88%, while the rest of Europe also saw an increase. On this occasion, Bentley’s Chairman Wolfgang Durheimer said: “It has been a tremendously good year for Bentley. The dramatic sales growth reflects a global strength to the Brand and a recognition of the quality, craftsmanship and engineering excellence of our cars. It is also testament to the work of the entire Bentley Team whose passion and daily commitment has delivered this outstanding result. It has been particularly pleasing to see renewed interest in Bentley in established as well as new and emerging markets, all of which is contributing to a positive financial result for 2011.”

The most popular model in 2011 was the Continental GT coupe, and with the launch of the V8 version of this model starting shortly, it will probably help propel Bentley’s sales to even greater heights.

The Volkswagen Group, which consists of Volkswagen, Audi, Bentley, Bugatti, Lamborghini and Porsche brands in America, are looking to become the number one seller of vehicles in the world by 2018. That’s a bold proclamation as they’re currently sitting in the number three position behind Toyota and General Motors.

As of last year, the VW Group was at 7.14-million vehicles sold while Toyota was at 8.42-million and GM was at 8.39-million. They’re currently aiming to be moving 10-million vehicles a year by 2018 and CEO Martin Winterkorn anticipates it’ll even happen before then.

Their plan will be to target the global market obviously, having already secured the European market. Their new plant in Chattanooga, Tennessee currently has the capacity to produce 150,000 vehicles a year, but VW is working on expanding it to 500,000, the majority of which will remain within the US market.

Even though VW has taken over European automotive sales with 2.9 vehicles sold in 2010, they still look to increase their market share with their new Up! model. But key to VW becoming the global leader in sales will be how they perform in other markets including Brazil, Russia, India and most importantly, China.

[Source: Car and Driver]

An insane nine car accident occurred out in Kiev, Ukraine, caused by a speeding Bentley Continental Flying Spur. And while this isn’t as painful to see as the Ferrari accident out in Japan, this Bentley did cause some real havoc.

Reports came in that the Bentley was just going way too fast at a junction, starting the accident that even involved a poor police officer that was controlling the junction. Fortunately he only suffered a fractured leg but the Mercedes-Benz CL500 that the Flying Spur hit can’t say the same. From the photos, the collision with the CL500 was so strong that most of the front end is missing and the engine is well, not quite where it’s supposed to be.

Check out the news report video after the break.

GALLERY: Bentley Continental Flying Spur Nine Car Accident

[Source: GT Spirit]

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Set to make their world debut at the 2012 Detroit Auto Show, Bentley has released some photos of their new V8-powered Continental GT Coupe and GT Convertible. Powered by a new 4.0L, twin-turbocharged V8 powerplant with 500-hp, Bentley claims that the new V8 will also deliver 40-percent better fuel economy.

The new V8 Continentals will also sport red-enamelled Bentley badges, originally seen only on performance-tuned Red Label cars. The new V8 was developed in collaboration with Audi, and features a cylinder management system that shuts down four of the eight cylinders at cruising speeds, maximizing fuel efficiency.

The new engine is mated to an eight-speed automatic transmission while the drivetrain is also equipped with stop-start technology to save fuel. Official numbers haven’t been announced yet on the V8-powered GT and GTC, but estimates are coming in at around 25-mpg, which is pretty impressive for a 500-hp luxury sports car.

The exterior of the V8-powered Continental has some styling changes too, with different exhaust tips, black gloss matrix grille, chrome frame and center bar. Both models will come with 20-inch wheels standard, with 21-inchers available as an option while the six-spoke design of the wheels are exclusive tot he V8 variant.

Interior choices include two-tone leather combinations, dark eucalyptus wood veneers and a new cloth headliner. U.S. pricing is expected at the Detroit Auto Show reveal.

GALLERY: Bentley Continental V8

Click here to see AutoGuide’s complete 2012 Detroit Auto Show preview

Bentley’s new Ice Speed Record watch was inspired by Juha Kankkunen’s record breaking time set on the ice.

Finland’s four-time world rally champion Juha Kankkunen set the world ice speed record in a Bentley Continental Supersports convertible, a feat that inspired both the Supersports Ice Speed Record convertible and the Ice Speed Record watch. Kankkunen set the record off the coast of Finland on the frozen Baltic Sea, off the coast of Finland, hitting a top speed of 205.48 mph.

Crafted by renowned watchmaker Breitling, the watch takes its cues from the convertible, sharing more than a few of the same design features. Dressed to impress with red detailing, carbon fibre fascia with dashboard-style dial and a classically knurled finish on the control buttons, this watch makes a distinct fashion statement.

Keeping time with Breitling Calibre 27B movement, the Ice Speed Record watch is self-winding and it is officially chronometer-certified by the COSC. Built with a titanium case, you’ll find a specially engraved number on the back. It even comes in a carbon fiber presentation box. This watch is water resistant to 100m, features a cambered sapphire crystal face, glare proofed on both sides and is held on your wrist with a highly durable rubber strap.

If you saw a 2008 Bentley Continental GTC convertible advertised for $13,900 you’d probably think something was up. Andre Souang, who who encountered this situation on Ebay with “a buy it now” incentive no doubt thought the same.

Nonetheless, the experienced Ebay user clicked his mouse and his offer was accepted.

It was then that things started to unravel, fast. The dealership that was selling the car, Bentley Scottsdale in Arizona, started sending him emails after the auction ended ranging from “we need to find a solution” to accusing Souang of trying to damage its business. It turns out that the true listing price for the car should have been $139,900 and the dealer had made a mistake. Nonetheless Souang replied stating he was willing to negotiate a deal on the car or perhaps a settlement.

His offers were declined, followed by a message from Ebay stating the auction had been canceled for “unspecified reasons” and Souang was left nothing. It turns out that automotive EBay auctions unlike those for other items are not legally binding contracts and at any time during the process, so both the buyer and seller can rescind if they so choose.

In this case, having been contacted by the seller, Bentley Scottsdale, Ebay elected to side with the dealership, insisting that proper procedure had been followed; that the car had been listed for an erroneously incorrect amount and the only appropriate thing to do was to remove the listing altogether.

This isn’t the first time something like this has happened on Ebay Motors.  Motor Trend magazine has reported several cases where a number of vehicles, advertised way below list, appeared on auctions listings. Buyers made bids and then the dealers selling the vehicles claimed pricing mistakes causing the auctions to be withdrawn.

However, in one instance concerning a Nissan GT-R, the vendor did end up claiming responsiblity and negotiated a deal with a buyer for the vehicle.

In Souang’s case Bentley Scottsdale remains decidedly unapologetic, which has led the Washington State native, who has many years experience buying and selling items on Ebay to become deeply suspicious of EBay’s operating practices when it comes to vehicle auctions.

“Ebay, which describes its job as bringing buyers and sellers together, did not take a neutral position, instead it acted as if it had a stake in the outcome of the car sale, deciding that it’s big client needed to be protected,”  Souang stated.

[Source: USA Today]

Following on from its world debut back in Frankfurt, the latest Bentley Continental GTC has now arrived on our shores, debuting in perhaps the most appropriate place in the land, Los Angeles.

Positioned on a customary wood lined Bentley display at the LA Auto Show, the GTC will no doubt be lining the streets of Bel Air and Beverly Hills in the near future, as well as other well-to-do districts from coast to coast.

Although at a glance, the difference between this car and it’s predecessor might not be readily apparent , the superformed aluminum front fenders and double horseshoe tail treatment reminiscent of the larger Mulsanne, lend a sharper definition of form and dare we say, even greater exclusivity.

That’s something which is carried over to the car’s interior, where old world craftsmanship melds with high technology, in this case handcrafted leather and wood, alongside a 30 gigabyte operated eight-inch in-dash screen with touch function, navigation, even a zip-code entry system, which likely prioritizes addresses ending in 90210.

Joking aside, this 567-hp, twin-turbo W12-powered bespoke special, also sports a recalibrated transmission for more responsive shift times and even seat neck warmers, allowing more northern buyers to enjoy open air driving for just that little bit longer.

The latest Bentley GTC will be on sale in the US before the end of this year, priced at $212,800. We’ll take two!

GALLERY: Bentley Continental GTC

See the AutoGuide’s complete 2011 LA Auto Show preview here

Bespoke means that provided you have a specific quest, as well as time and money, just about anything is possible. So, how about a one-off pink Bentley?

Actually a factory job, commissioned by California concessionaire Bentley San Diego, this unique Continental GT was built to contribute awareness to the Susan G. Komen for the Cure breast cancer foundation and appropriately perhaps, the car’s codename is ‘Cure.’

The 575 hp, W12 powered beast, capable of accelerating from 0-62 mph in just 4.6 seconds, will have a portion of the proceeds from its sale, go to the foundation to help further breast cancer research and prevention.

There likely won’t ever be another Bentley like this car, thus whoever ends up with it, will not only have helped contribute to a good cause, they’ll also never have to worry about losing their vehicle in a parking lot.

[Source: GTspirit.com]

Volkswagen is experiencing unprecedented levels of success as for the first time in the German automaker’s history, 6.11 million vehicles have been sold in the first nine months of the year. If sales momentum continues, Volkswagen will easily surpass its annual target of 8 million vehicles sold for 2011.

Volkswagen Group Board member for Sales Christian Klinger takes an optimistic, yet more conservative stand, “We are also expecting very good delivery figures for the fourth quarter. We continue to keep a close eye on developments in global automobile markets, some of which are highly volatile.”

Areas of significant sales increases are 21.4 percent increase to 485,400 units in North America, 17.3 percent increase to 1.92 million units in Asia, 10.8 percent increase to 2.77 million units in Europe, and 9.5 percent increase to 700,900 units in South America.

Sales are broken down to 266,800 Seat vehicles, 664,800 Skoda vehicles, 973,200 Audi vehicles, 3.81 million Volkswagen vehicles and 389,900 VW Commercial vehicles.

Wolfgang Dürheimer, Bentley Motors’ CEO recently declared, in reference to the firm’s upcoming SUV, that,  ”we will be first to use a 12-cylinder petrol engine in a luxury SUV.”

Unfortunately he’s wrong. That distinction belongs to Lamborghini, who offered a 12-cylinder motor in the LM 002 back in the 1980s.

Nevertheless, featuring a motor with 12 bores will still give Bentley’s 4 x 4 a good deal of prestige, since today, there’s nothing currently like it on the market.

As for the type of engine chosen, expect a version of the W12 motor found in the Bentley Continental series, not only preferred for reasons of cost and convenience, but also according to Dürheimer, packaging.

That said, there are currently rumors circulating that besides a gas fueled W12, Bentley may add a V-configuration motor, probably a diesel somewhere further down the line, likely derived from Audi’s existing V12 TDI, currently offered in the Q7 crossover.

With the chief engineer on the project none other than Rolf Frech, who Dürheimer pinched from Porsche (where he worked on the original Cayenne), it looks like all the ingredients are in place for a Bentley SUV to hit the road in the not too distant future (a launch date of around 2015 is believed to be on the cards).

That said, the new vehicle’s introduction will still be determined by the product life cycle of other Bentley models, which Dürheimer says tend to last six to eight years. “The Mulsanne came in 2010, then the Continental no more than a year later, so the new model will be valuable when we are expecting a lull,” he says. “The downswing is the time to introduce this SUV.”

Yet regardless of ‘timing’ Dürheimer is now more convinced than ever that the demand for such a machine  as a Bentley 4 x 4 is there. “Ninety-nine per cent of Bentley owners also own an SUV,” he says. “Absolutely thousands of premium SUVs have been sold — Cayennes, Range Rovers, Q7s and so on — but nobody has given those owners the chance to upgrade. We will.”

[Source: Autocar]