BERLIN: Bentley and Lamborghini’s plans to develop ultra-luxury SUVs may be put on hold to save cash for parent Volkswagen, company sources said, in a sign that the crisis is beginning to bite even for the German auto giant.
UK-based Bentley and the Italian supercar maker rolled out extravagant concept sport utility vehicles (SUV) at the auto shows in Geneva and Beijing this year, with production awaiting approval by VW’s management board. The push towards off-roaders is aimed at boosting profitability at Lamborghini, loss-making since 2009, and Bentley.
The move has dismayed Lamborghini purists who fear that expanding to four-by-fours will dilute the brand’s exclusivity.
Grappling with unforeseen production cuts and slowing auto sales, VW may postpone the models as it reviews planned spending on equipment, factories and vehicles due to be ratified by VW’s supervisory board on November 23, two company sources said.
“Such vehicles are anything but obligatory during a crisis,” said Frankfurt-based Equinet AG analyst Tim Schuldt. “Delaying their launch would be no drama but help save costs.” VW, on course to overtake US rival General Motors as the world’s second-biggest carmaker behind Toyota Motor Corp, has outperformed the European market this year.
The German company’s eight-month EU-wide sales were flat at 2.05 million cars, compared with a 7.1 percent drop to 8.27 million vehicles for the 27-nation region’s market. The Wolfsburg-based maker of the Golf hatchback said on Tuesday that sales at its flagship passenger car brand rose just 4.3 percent to 492,500 vehicles in September, the smallest gain in eight months.
VW halted production in Germany of its Passat model for two days last week as part of a wider move to cut group output by about 300,000 vehicles to 9.4 million cars this year.
Reuters
