Thursday 14th November 2013

Bentley: made in Germany

New Flying Spur becomes less bangers and mash and more wurst und kartoffelsalat

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Foreign-built Bentleys. There’s something about that phrase that simply feels… well, a little odd, isn’t there? After all, Crewe’s the home of the flying B, and ever it were thus – right? Well, no, actually. In 2005 and 2006, a handful of examples of the then-new Bentley Flying Spur rolled off the production line at Volkswagen’s ‘Glaserne Manufaktur’, or Transparent Factory – the glossy Dresden home of the Phaeton production line. With demand high for the Spur, and low for the Phaeton, it seemed like the logical thing to do.

And, given the same circumstances now, it seems VW’s at it again. The recent release of the second-generation Flying Spur has seen high demand from Asia – coincidentally, a market in which the Phaeton is fading fast as Audi’s A8 L, Mercedes’ S-Class, and to a lesser extent, the BMW 7 Series gobble up its market share. So once again, Spurs will soon be flying (sorry) down the production line in Saxony, filling the hole that those shrinking Phaeton sales have left behind.

Fancy Phaeton factory now to build Bentleys

And while that might rankle with some patriotic Brits, you can’t fault the business sense in the decision. “The Bentley’s bodies are already produced in Zwickau in Saxony, so the synergy is optimal,” Hans-Joachim Rothenpieler, technical director and CEO of VW Saxony, told the German tabloid Bild.

“Bentley is growing and the build plan for the new Flying Spur shows a significant increase in volume due to the positive costumer response,” a spokesperson told PH. “We have therefore decided to build a limited number of Flying Spurs in the year 2013 from November onwards at Dresden. This decision is to help address aspecific challenge we have on satisfying the market demand for our new Flying Spur.”

The million-euro question, of course, is: will buyers care that their Bentley was actually screwed together in Dresden? Perhaps not. Where a particular model’s built doesn’t seem to be a major concern for most other manufacturers, it has to be said. But then again, we can’t help but wonder whether some customers might baulk at the discovery that their exquisitely-crafted British limo was actually built somewhere across the sea.

[Sources: Bild.de, Bentley]

[Matt UK]

Hmmmm, I think traditional Brit buyer will care, the new money footballers less so.

My understanding though is that the USA and China love the idea of British brands and all of the imagery and heritage around hand-built quality that comes with it.
What would they think if they found out? Would it burst the illusion bubble? Not sure, but if I were VW I'd proceed with caution so as not to kill the golden goose.

[NotNormal]

This news makes a bit of a mockery of what's being said in the latest Drive videos....

[GTEYE]

Perhaps it will matter to many on this forum, but I don't think it will harm sales of the product one bit.

In this increasingly smaller world, it's all about buying in to the "brand" - do people care where its assembled?

As long as it's built right, probably not...

[anonymous-user]

I am sure it will come that bentley crewe will end up making knock down kits, but i do think vag should invest more at crewe to expand if they are doing so well.

Edited by The Spruce goose on Thursday 14th November 09:51

[Konrod]

Visiting the Bentley factory a few years ago, lots of the parts had Audi 4 rings on them, so where it is screwed together is a a moot point really. The Britishness is about the design and tactile materials (wood, leather, chrome). Whether the guy who fitted the dashboard is called Walter or Wolfgang is hardly relevant to the buyer provided it was done properly.

Different story of course from a UK jobs perspective...........

[k-ink]

I have not considered Bentley British for years. Just like the BMW MINI. I would be surprised if anyone felt differently, so it seems like a non story.

[RichB]

The Spruce goose said:

I am sure it will come that bentley crewe will end up making knock down kits, but i do think vag should invest moe at crewe to expand if they are dong so well.

iPhones eh?!?

[delays]

Konrod said:

The Britishness is about the design and tactile materials (wood, leather, chrome). Whether the guy who fitted the dashboard is called Walter or Wolfgang is hardly relevant to the buyer provided it was done properly.

Different story of course from a UK jobs perspective...........

I agree - British part is in the design, materials and - dare I say it - branding and marketing.

Boxsters were produced in Finland, nobody cared; Aston built the Rapide in Finland too.

[Jordan210]

k-ink said:

I have not considered Bentley British for years. Just like the BMW MINI. I would be surprised if anyone felt differently, so it seems like a non story.

MINI would not be the brand it is now and employ all these people in the UK with out BMW. British heritage with Germany engineering.

Might not be fully British any more but would not still around with out the Germans. So im not going to complain.

I guess with the demand for Bentleys in China you need to expand some how.

Edited by Jordan210 on Thursday 14th November 09:56

[edcs]

Saves them shipping all the bits they use to ASSEMBLE them over to the UK, doesn't it.

[jamespink]

I saw two new Bentleys on the M40 the other day, staggeringly beautiful machines with massive presence. Gorgeous. Would be nice if they were built in the UK but since we were all happy to see Bently sold, I can't see we have much say over where the new owners choose to build them.

There is something so British about moaning about this kind of thing. Instead of getting behind a British company before it gets into a take over position (investment, support, encouragement, actually buying the cars) Brits seem to be happy to moan post event... Too late matey!

[MonteV]

"And while that might rankle with some patriotic Brits, you can’t fault the business sense in the decision."

It depends. If the buyers don't care that it's "Made in Germany", then you are correct. However, if buyers want it to be British, and not buying a German made Bentley because of it, then the business sense can be faulted. Presumably they've researched it before going ahead. How long before "Bentley - made in China"?

[MrTappets]

I think it's still perfectly possible to think of Bentley as a British brand. I don't think of Nissan as anything other than a Japanese brand, even though it's a multinational company.

[BluePurpleRed]

I wouldn't buy one personally. I'm not in the market to be fair but it jars with my expectations. I would just defect to something else in the bracket. The bang on all the time ( like in the Drive videos ) what a custom thing you are getting. I'd rather wait and get one made in Crewe, and I'd want to go there and specify it and see the build etc.

Although many people won't care as long as the finished product is impeccible, so may not damage the brand as much.

[Rich1973]

[quote=Jordan210]


MINI would not be the brand it is now and employ all these people in the UK with out BMW. British heritage with Germany engineering.

Might not be fully British any more but would not still around with out the Germans. So im not going to complain.


quote]

Mini would have been doing just fine without BMW. They couldnt pass up the opportunity after they had finished pillaging the Rover group to take the Mini brand, and leave the twitching corpse of what was left after claiming to have tried to help. it was all BS but seemingly not many people cared.

[edinph]

It matters to me! When the day comes to order my Bentley, I'll be checking the " Made in ****** " tag!
I hope this doesn't backfire. The reason Chinese buyers want them is because it's BRITISH.

[A Scotsman]

The Eastenders/X-Factor watching sector of society won't bat an eyelid but those who have any understanding at all of how economies actually work will realise that this is not in any sense good news for UK plc.

For Volkswagen it's a bizarre move. After all, they acquired Bentley partly because of its "Britishness". Leather and walnut and all that. For them to weaken that unique sales pitch is not very clever and it could hurt them.

[dapearson]

Rich1973]ordan210 said:

MINI would not be the brand it is now and employ all these people in the UK with out BMW. British heritage with Germany engineering.

Might not be fully British any more but would not still around with out the Germans. So im not going to complain.


quote]

Mini would have been doing just fine without BMW. They couldnt pass up the opportunity after they had finished pillaging the Rover group to take the Mini brand, and leave the twitching corpse of what was left after claiming to have tried to help. it was all BS but seemingly not many people cared.

I'm ready to be flamed for this, but the BMWness of our MINI is one of my favourite bits. The switchgear, onboard computer and general feel of the car is very BMW. I like it.

[4a4]

The reason they're doing it is because;
A) They have the space and facilities (Ex-Phaeton)
B) Makes logistical sense as to where the parts are made to where they are assembled
C) THERE IS A LARGE DEMAND FOR THEM ANYWAY....

It's not going to hurt sales one bit. Who knows, you might actually end up with a better quality product!

[tclynes]

its not great for the economy, but I remember when the Phaeton came out there was a whole website about the factory it was made in (wood floors, white suits the lot). It may not be british but its the best 2nd place for them to be made.

Will be interesting to know if the chinese customers are aware of it though.