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Bentley names new CEO for the Americas

Bentley has announced a shift in its upper ranks that will see Michael Winkler take the reins as head of its operations in the Americas. A longtime sales executive and regional manager, Winkler has worked for Porsche in locations around the world, and comes to Bentley from his previous position as director of Australian operations for Jaguar Land Rover. In his new capacity as president and CEO of Bentley Motors Inc. – the office responsible for handling the brand's operations across the Americas – Winkler will report to Kevin Rose, the Bentley board member for sales and marketing. Winkler succeeds Christophe Georges, who moves back to the head office as director of product and marketing. The British automaker has 53 dealerships across the Americas, accounting for 29 percent of its global sales last year. Its American operations are based at 2200 Ferdinand Porsche Drive in Herndon, VA. MICHAEL WINKLER NEW PRESIDENT AND CEO OF BENTLEY MOTORS INC. (Crewe/Herndon 26th January 2015) Bentley Motors today announced that Michael Winkler will become President and Chief Executive Officer of Bentley Motors Inc., the regional office for Bentley Motors in the Americas, with effect from 1st April 2015. He succeeds Christophe Georges, who was recently appointed Director of Product and Marketing for Bentley's global organisation. Winkler will report directly to Kevin Rose, Bentley's Member of the Board for Sales, Marketing and Aftersales. Rose commented: "The Americas region plays a key part in Bentley's global success, our biggest market with more Bentley customers than anywhere else in the world. I am delighted to welcome Michael to Bentley, and look forward to working with him to drive our brand and network presence further." Winkler has more than 30 years of experience in the automotive industry, holding a number of international positions, working with Porsche in Germany, North America and Australia, and joins Bentley from Jaguar Land Rover, where he held the position of Managing Director of the company's Australian division. The Americas remained Bentley's number one market throughout 2014, closing the year delivering 3,186 cars, up from the 2013 number of 3,140. This accounted for 29% of total global deliveries. There are 53 Bentley dealerships throughout the Americas, with the corporate headquarters based in Herndon, Virginia.

2024 Bentley Edition 8 models signal time's up for the gas-only V8

Bentley might still be bidding its W12 engine goodbye with various swansong vehicles, but now it’s the 4.0-liter twin-turbo V8Â’s turn to say adieu. At least in the Continental and Flying Spur models – the Bentayga will continue on with this powertrain for an unspecified amount of time. We donÂ’t have a hard cutoff in North America for the V8, but Bentley says production of its final 4.0-liter twin-turbo V8 cars in Europe, the UK and the Middle East is to be completed soon with final deliveries in June. North America “will follow later.” Before you hop straight to the comments, know this doesnÂ’t mean Bentley is abandoning the V8 entirely. It announced alongside this news that an “all-new” V8 plug-in hybrid powertrain is on the horizon and will serve as the companyÂ’s flagship offering, technically replacing the W12. Output is pegged at 740 horsepower with this model, and all-electric range from the battery pack is estimated at 50 miles on the WLTP drive cycle – expect notably fewer miles of range in EPA testing. ThatÂ’s all we know today, but Bentley says more will be revealed in time As for what will replace the soon-to-be-retired gas-only V8 option, Bentley suggests hybrid powertrains would be used and that all of its model lines would offer a hybrid variant by 2024. The only model without a hybrid available yet is the Continental, so expect an announcement concerning that car imminently.  To celebrate the end of the current V8Â’s era, Bentley put together “Edition 8” versions of its Flying Spur, Continental GT and Continental GTC. ItÂ’s a North America-special and comes with lots of Mulliner options as standard equipment. The Continental models feature Edition 8 badges on their fenders, while the Flying Spur wears it on its D pillar. An Edition 8 motif can be seen embroidered on the seat backs and engraved on the treadplates, too. One particularly notable luxury touch is the Palm Fluting pattern (seen in the photo above) on its sumptuous seats, which Bentley says it has never offered on any of its core/mainstream models before. Deliveries of the Edition 8 will begin “imminently,” so if youÂ’re a particularly big fan of BentleyÂ’s current V8 and have money to spend, now is the time. Related Video

Bentley targets audiophiles with custom Continental at CES

Bentley brought a unique version of its Continental GT V8 S to CES this year, packing a unique sound system crafted by the audio trendsetters at Monster. And with it, Bentley's Mulliner customization department outfitted the luxury status symbol in singular style. The Monster by Mulliner features 16 speakers and 3,400 watts of aural stimulation for an in-car audio system not offered for production. In addition to the surround sound system, Mulliner decked the Conti out in Onyx black with red accents and gloss black wheels hiding red brake calipers. The interior features a custom 3D laser-etched dashboard panel and piano black trim as well as specific embroidery and tread plates. It even has a pair of 24-karat gold wireless headphones housed in a special compartment inside. The result is a decidedly different take on the ubiquitous luxury car than the stone veneer panels that Mulliner most recently announced. Bentley suggests in the statement below that the Monster by Mulliner will be offered as a limited edition, "designed to appeal to young professional athletes and musicians." It's certainly not for the timid, but we wouldn't be surprised to see them popping up in music videos and the parking lots outside stadiums in the near future. Related Video: BENTLEY AND MONSTER DEBUT "MONSTER BY MULLINER" CONTINENTAL GT V8 S FEATURING PURE MONSTER SOUND AT CES 2016 IN LAS VEGAS - Handcrafted by Bentley's Mulliner Division and inspired by Monster - Spectacular limited production vehicle designed to appeal to young professional athletes and musicians (Crewe / Las Vegas, NV, January 6 2016) Monster, the world leader in high-performance audio, has teamed up with Bentley Motors' bespoke coach-building division, Mulliner, to create a stunning and uniquely Monster-inspired "Monster by Mulliner," which makes its debut at CES 2016. The show-stopping Bentley Continental GT V8 S, which reflects Monster's attitude of "Always Lead, Never Follow," is designed to appeal to the target market of young professionals and movers and shakers in sports and music. The "Monster by Mulliner" Continental GT V8 S is a bespoke vehicle that will inspire those who want a ride with a bold look and incredible audio performance designed by Monster. Monster's latest innovations in audio technology bring the power of today's music into this Bentley's luxurious cabin.