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Bentley CEO Adrian Hallmark explains carmaker's situation and plan for recovery

In August, we posted on some of the issues plaguing Bentley at the moment, namely the large loss the carmaker's posted this year. The same Autocar piece we referenced, carmaker CEO Adrian Hallmark said Bentley would not be making more sports cars. Bentley wrote to us to clarify that a single year's loss isn't a calamity, that "it is a mistake to suggest that sports cars are the same as GTs," and that the brand "will continue to design, engineer, and craft" GT cars. We must note, though, that at the time, Hallmark himself said, "The sports car sector – like our own...." More recently, Hallmark expounded on some of the factors slowing the company down this year, from delayed launches to exchange rates. Through the first nine months of the year, Bentley sold 6,654 units, an 11 percent decline from the 7,498 units sold through the first nine months of 2017. In addition to other matters like huge investments in new technologies, that helped the Crewe carmaker to a $44.7-million year-over-year drop in revenue, and a $156-million overall loss, compared to a $35 million profit over the same period last year. On top of declining sales overall, the nine-month delay in launching the Continental GT, the brand's second-best seller, was the first of two big issues causing red finances. Hallmark said the Continental GT "just wasn't ready for launch. But we'd paid for it – we'd paid all the money out, but not got any money back in." Having got that sorted, the second issue arose: WLTP certification. Unlike the New European Driving Cycle (NEDC) before it, the Worldwide harmonized Light vehicles Test Procedure requires every model variant get tested for certification. Hallmark told Automotive News Europe, "We were not quick enough unfortunately to book capacity or prioritize our derivatives within some of the group processes to get them certified on time." Bentley wasn't alone in this; Volkswagen had only managed to get seven of its 14 models approved by September 1 when the WLTP rules took effect. Bentley's much smaller scale exacerbated the problem, turning the situation "close to catastrophic." Hallmark said the snafu robbed the Bentayga of 300 to 400 sales - a gigantic number with respect to a $200,000 vehicle - and pushed the Bentayga plug-in hybrid launch back to March 2019 so Bentley could get volume models certified. Furthermore, preparing for Brexit hasn't been easy on any of the UK's manufacturers.

Former Lamborghini designer reportedly headed to Hyundai

Luc Donckerwolke (pictured above) only left his position as the Director of Design for Bentley in early June, but he might have already had a new gig lined up as he was walking out the door. Donckerwolke is reportedly teaming up with former Volkswagen Group styling bigwig Peter Schreyer at Hyundai Motor, in a position to eventually take over the look of all of the Korean brands' vehicles. At the moment, this major hire for Hyundai and Kia is still just a rumor, though, and the Korean automaker is playing it close to the vest. Company spokesperson Jim Trainor tells Autoblog, "We do not comment on speculation concerning potential appointments." However, insiders tell Automotive News that the deal is the reason for Donckerwolke walking away from his long career among VW's brands. In Korea, Donckerwolke would hold a position under Schreyer at first, and he would take over Hyundai and Kia's design duties when Schreyer retires, which is expected in about two years. Donckerwolke joined the German automotive giant in 1992 and eventually came to define the modern look of Lamborghini by penning both the Murcielago and Gallardo. In 2011, he became the Head of Advanced Design for VW Group and took over styling duties at Bentley in 2012. Schreyer left a fruitful career at VW Group, including penning the original Audi TT, to join Kia in 2006. He gained the overall design duties for the Hyundai and Kia brands in 2012. Ousted VW Chairman Ferdinand Piech once said that he was regretful of losing the talented stylist. Related Video:

Now you can order a Bentley with real stone trim

Order up a new Bentley and you'll have some choices to make. After choosing which model, you'll need to select from over a hundred standard exterior paint colors and a staggering array of trim options – and now, interior stone veneers. Mulliner will now outfit your Bentley with actual stone trim. Now we know what you're probably thinking: stone adds weight. But here's the kicker: Bentley's new stone veneers measure just 0.004 inches thick. That's less than the breadth of a human hair, and (according to the automaker) makes these trim pieces not only very lightweight, but also translucent. The rocks are sourced from quaries in India, cured using fiberglass and resin, and finished by the Mulliner coachbuilding team back at the factory in Crewe, England. Customers will be able to select between a natural finish or in four tints to install on a new Continental or Flying Spur. So if you were hoping for a little extra ballast in your 5,300-lb Bentayga or 6,000-lbs Mulsanne, we're afraid you'll just have to choose a different interior accent. STONE VENEERS BY MULLINER – THE NEXT LEVEL OF MODERN BRITISH LUXURY - Bentley pushes boundaries of cabin luxury with new and rare materials - Lightweight and contemporary feature developed by Mulliner - Four exclusive colours: Galaxy, Autumn White, Terra Red and Copper (Crewe, 04 January, 2016) Bentley Motors' bespoke coach-building division, Mulliner, is introducing the next level of modern British automotive luxury – stone veneers. This innovative interior finish utilises state-of-the-art stone veneer technology to make a luxurious, contemporary feature of a natural product formed over 200 million years. The slate and quartzite stone is sustainably sourced from hand-selected quarries in Rajasthan and Andhra Pradesh, India – a nation with an ancient and rich culture of stone masonry. The sections of stone are split from larger pieces and cured using glass fibre and a bespoke resin. Finally, they are shaped and hand finished by Bentley's world-renowned Mulliner coachbuilding team at the company's headquarters in Crewe, England. The stone surfaces of the veneers are just 0.1 mm thick, meaning that they are both extremely light and translucent, allowing the elegant grain and pattern in the stone to be visible to the interior occupants.