Regulatory Fumble Hurts Bentley Production, Sales

Volkswagen AG’s Bentley luxury car unit nearly halted operations after failing to certify its cars to meet the European emission standards that took effect on Sept. 1.

The result of the failure to arrange for the necessary tests caused “close to catastrophic” problems, CEO Adrian Hallmark tells Automotive News Europe.

Volkswagen Group was hit especially hard by the scramble to recertify its hundreds of models. Hallmark admits that Bentley ended up “stuck in the queue” to access to test labs.

The shortage of test capacity was caused by carmakers scrambling to comply with Europe’s shift to the new WLTP (Worldwide Harmonized Light Vehicle Test Procedure) from the decades-old NEDC (New European Driving Cycle) test protocol.

Certification troubles delayed the debut of Bentley’s redesigned Continental GT coupe and contributed to a €137 million ($156 million) loss in January-September, according to VW Group. Bentley sales skidded 11% to 6,600 vehicles for the period.

Testing delays also cost Bentley about 400 sales of its $230,000 Bentayga crossover vehicle and halted the debut of a plug-in hybrid version of the car. That iteration has been rescheduled for a March launch.