Bentley Motors says it has now built 200 000 vehicles, with the milestone vehicle rolling off the assembly line some 102 years after the automaker was established.
The 200 000th vehicle is a Bentayga Hybrid destined for a customer in China.
Interestingly, the milestone vehicle is also the 155 582th vehicle built at Crewe since 2003 (with 44 418 units – 38 933 in Crewe – manufactured from 1919 to 2002). Indeed, Bentley says it is now building 85 cars a day, matching its one-month output from just two decades ago.
The British firm says the Continental GT has played a major role in its volume growth, with the 80 000th example having been built in January 2021. The Bentayga, too, has made a marked difference, with more than 25 000 units built since 2015. Since 2005, the company has also produced 40 000 examples of the Flying Spur.
“This production of the 200 000th car is just the latest landmark on the extraordinary journey that Bentley has been travelling since its foundation in 1919,” said Adrian Hallmark, Bentley’s chairman and chief executive.
“In 2003, the introduction of the Continental GT represented a transformative moment for the brand, and this Bentley alone, has represented 80 000 sales of our total 200 000, and created both a new segment, and a contemporary image foundation for the Bentley business.
“The pace of progress has accelerated significantly since 2003 and we are now entering the next period of transformation as we pursue our Beyond100 strategy, with the aim of positioning Bentley as the global leader in sustainable luxury mobility.”
Bentley says it plans to “move to full electrification” (so, a range comprising exclusively plug-in hybrid or all-electric models) by 2026, before switching the entire line-up to battery electric vehicles by 2030.
