news

한어Русский языкEnglishFrançaisIndonesianSanskrit日本語DeutschPortuguêsΕλληνικάespañolItalianoSuomalainenLatina

netcom interview at the 2024 chengdu international auto show, bentley's edition 8 models, specially designed for the chinese market, made their debut in china: the three new models, bentley flying spur, continental gt and continental gt convertible edition 8, are equipped with bentley's 4.0-liter twin-turbocharged v8 gasoline engine. bentley also brings chinese customers a number of the most popular "selected configurations" including customized colors. taking this opportunity, netcom had the honor of participating in an exclusive interview with mr. kim airey, executive general manager of bentley motors in mainland china, hong kong and macau. he introduced bentley's electrification and its judgment on the market prospects. the following is the transcript of the interview:

question: the new continental gt speed ​​has already made its debut in china. what is the plan for the replacement of the bentley flying spur? is the execution of bentley's "beyond 100" business strategy still within expectations?

an ruike:the new bentley flying spur will be launched in the near future, and the new car plan will be announced soon. the new car will also be equipped with a new ultra-high performance hybrid system, and more details of the model will be released soon. our current focus is still on the new continental gt ultimate edition.

with the launch of the new continental gt speed, bentley has introduced plug-in hybrid options across its entire range, a very important milestone in the execution of its “beyond100” business strategy. next, we plan to launch bentley’s first all-electric model in 2026.

overall, we are still advancing based on the "beyond 100" business strategy. the transition phase of the plug-in hybrid system may be slightly longer than previously expected, and the delivery time of the vehicle may also be adjusted based on market feedback.

question: in the first half of this year, super luxury car brands including bentley faced a significant decline in sales in the chinese market. what do you think are the core reasons?

an ruike:i think the reason is essentially the impact of the economic cycle.

this can be analyzed specifically from two aspects: first, in 2021 and 2022, the ultra-luxury car market performed very strongly, and bentley motors also set sales records in the chinese market. it is natural for the market to pull back after that. this wave of pullback has gradually appeared since 2023, and now it has actually returned to the normal digital level before the previous peak in the ultra-luxury car market. secondly, we can also observe that the performance of the stock market and the property market are both declining, and there is sometimes a large correlation between the market performance of these areas and the ultra-luxury car market.

bentley motors has always been closely following market trends and will make production arrangements and adjust market expectations based on market demand. we are still satisfied with bentley motors' performance in the chinese market so far this year.

question: based on the launch of new models, what is your judgment on the overall development of china's super luxury car market in the second half of this year?

an ruike: i believe that the overall performance of china's super luxury car market in the second half of this year will be basically the same as in the first half of this year. there may be some seasonal fluctuations. for example, some customers tend to buy cars at the end of the year, so sometimes you will find that the market performance in the second half of the year is slightly better than the first half of the year, but overall there will not be much change.

question: what trends are emerging in bentley's customer base in the chinese market? how does the bentley brand respond to such changes and the demands of the chinese market?

an ruike:we believe that the entire development process of the bentley brand in the chinese market is very fortunate. we have a high market awareness and recognition at different stages. when bentley motors first entered the chinese market, our goal was to meet customer needs.

as the market develops, we have observed that bentley customers in china are becoming younger and younger. we will also take this trend into consideration and fully consider customer needs.

under the pressure of the current economic environment, more and more customers still favor and choose bentley cars, which reflects that customers have a high degree of recognition of the bentley brand and models. therefore, we will not make major adjustments to our strategy for the chinese market.

at the same time, we continue to listen to customer and market feedback and reflect it in the design of the models. for example, the new continental gt speed ​​edition adopts a single oval headlight design. this is the first time since the launch of the first generation of the continental gt that bentley motors has not adopted round headlights. this change was inspired by customer feedback.

question: does bentley motors have any specific age distribution data for its customer base in china that you can share?

an ruike:the latest data shows that the average age of bentley customers in the chinese market is 39, one year lower than 40 last year.

another notable trend in the customer group is the increase in the proportion of female customers. the customer structure of bentley in the chinese market is relatively complex, including the influence of chinese family structure, and car buyers may not be actual users. but overall, the proportion of female car buyers is on the rise. in terms of car models, female customers prefer continental gt and bentayga.

the continental gt and bentayga are both models that emphasize driving experience and handling performance. this customer trend also shows that more and more female customers are actually daily users of vehicles. in contrast, most customers of the bentley flying spur and bentayga long wheelbase use the vehicles as passengers.

question: how is bentley motors' electrification process going? does the electrification trend in the chinese market promote the brand's electrification development?

an ruike:bentley motors is committed to leading the ultra-luxury travel mode that conforms to the concept of sustainable development. based on the "beyond100" business strategy, bentley motors previously promised to provide plug-in hybrid versions for all models in 2024, and now this goal has been achieved. the next stage of the electrification process will be the launch of the first bentley pure electric model, which is expected to be launched in 2026.

from the perspective of the chinese market, china's investment in the development of electrification is leading the world. as china continues to improve its charging station network, the transition to electrification will be smoother, which is undoubtedly good news for bentley motors' electrification process in the chinese market.

question: chengdu represents china's western market to a certain extent. the bentley brand has always attached great importance to the western market. i would like to ask how bentley cars have performed in the western market this year?

an ruike:chengdu has always been a very important regional market for bentley motors in china, with strong customer demand. chengdu is also one of the first cities where bentley brand established dealerships.

(photo/text: zou yuyuan, netcom)