Bentley can look back on a great year. In 2020, the exclusive brand delivered a record number of 11,206 cars, despite the outbreak of the corona virus. Bentley is growing rapidly in China in particular.
The fact that Bentley sets a sales record in a year when car manufacturers usually struggled is remarkable. The sales total of 11,206 cars is a growth of 2 percent compared to 2019. America remains the largest sales market for Bentley with 3,035 cars, but China follows closely with 2,880 cars. There, the sales total increased by no less than 48 percent. Europe is the third market for the British VW subsidiary, but here the figure dropped by 18 percent. Overall, Bentley expected even higher growth in early 2020, but the coronavirus put an end to that plan. In March, the factories closed for seven weeks and in the next nine weeks they were running at half production capacity. Seen in that light, the current result is all the more remarkable.
In the past year, Bentley showed the necessary innovation. At the end of 2019, the new Flying Spur appeared on the scene, which was also available with a V8 in 2020. In addition, the Bentayga received a thorough makeover. The SUV accounts for 39 percent of total sales, making it the most important model for Bentley. The brand recently also unveiled the plug-in hybrid. According to CEO Adrian Hallmark, nine more new models are planned for the coming year. It would appear that they all contain some form of electrification, as Bentley aims to be fully electric by 2030. Bentley is not making any predictions for the coming year yet, but it seems logical that last year’s sales record will not hold for long.