Volkswagen is reportedly planning to make Bentley a subsidiary of its Audi unit as it looks to gain economies of scale in its high-end brands, Reuters reports, picking up on news first published on the matter by German trade publication Automobilwoche.
Citing internal sources, Automobilwoche said the purported shift to make the British automaker part of Audi is set to take place next year, with Volkswagen group CEO Herbert Diess believing that the move will offer the automaker more potential. New synergies could come in the form of Audi technology being used for a new Bentley SUV, the report added.
Volkswagen declined to comment on the report. Earlier this month, news emerged that the German automaker was also reviewing the future of its Lamborghini, Bugatti and Ducati brands as it begins shifting its focus towards mass producing electric cars and attempts to double its value to 200 billion euros.
Sources familiar with the matter told Reuters that the review could result in technology partnerships or restructuring for the brands right up to a stock market listing or even a sale. It was reported that Volkswagen was working on plans to make Lamborghini a more independent unit within the group, and has sounded out investors to gauge sentiment over the possibility of listing the Italian sports car maker on the stock market sometime in 2021.
Last week, the news agency reported that Volkswagen had begun hosting preliminary talks with potential bidders for its Ducati brand to gauge potential interest in the motorcycle maker ahead of a November planning round.
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This Brit have been relegated to a sub-subbrand. So sad for Brit maruah dijual.
Haha looks the same with Proton and Geely.
Big difference. Bentley was a luxury brand so maruah was uber high, Proton was a down to earth brand so maruah also down to earth. The fall by Bentley was meteoric.
The Brits never had any maruah anyway!
Audi parts bin for Bentley.