Bentley

Bentley Motors Limited

Formerly	Rolls-Royce Motors Limited (1970–1986)[1] Rolls-Royce Motor Cars Limited (1986–1999)[1] Rolls-Royce & Bentley Motor Cars Limited (1999–2002)[1]
Company type	Subsidiary
Industry	Automotive
Founded	18 January 1919; 105 years ago (1919-01-18)
Founders	H. M. Bentley W. O. Bentley
Fate	1931: acquired by Rolls-Royce Limited 1980: acquired by Vickers 1998: acquired by Volkswagen Group[2]
Headquarters	Crewe , England[3]
Area served	Worldwide
Key people	Adrian Hallmark (Chairman, CEO)[4] John Paul Gregory (Head of Exterior Design)[5] Darren Day (Head of Interior Design)[6]
Products	Flying Spur Continental GT Bentayga Mulsanne [7]
Production output	9,107 vehicles (2012) 7,593 vehicles (2011) [8][9]
Services	Automobile customisation
Revenue	€1,453 million (2012) €1,119 million (2011) [8]
Net income	€8 million (2011) −€245 million (2010) [10]
Owner	Volkswagen Group[11]
Number of employees	3,600 (2013)[12]
Parent	Audi
Website	bentleymotors.com
Footnotes / references [13][14]

Bentley Motors Limited is a British designer, manufacturer and marketer of luxury cars and SUVs. Headquartered in Crewe, England, the company was founded by W. O. Bentley (1888–1971) in 1919 in Cricklewood, North London, and became widely known for winning the 24 Hours of Le Mans in 1924, 1927, 1928, 1929 and 1930. Bentley has been a subsidiary of the Volkswagen Group since 1998 and consolidated under VW's premium brand arm Audi since 2022.^[15][16]

Prominent models extend from the historic sports-racing Bentley 4½ Litre and Bentley Speed Six; the more recent Bentley R Type Continental, Bentley Turbo R, and Bentley Arnage; to its current model line, including the Flying Spur, Continental GT, Bentayga and the Mulsanne—which are marketed worldwide, with China as its largest market as of November 2012.^[17]

Today most Bentley models are assembled at the company's Crewe factory, with a small number assembled at Volkswagen's Dresden factory, Germany,^[18] and with bodies for the Continental manufactured in Zwickau and for the Bentayga manufactured at the Volkswagen Bratislava Plant.

The joining and eventual separation of Bentley and Rolls-Royce followed a series of mergers and acquisitions, beginning with the 1931 purchase by Rolls-Royce of Bentley, then in receivership. In 1971, Rolls-Royce itself was forced into receivership and the UK government nationalised the company—splitting it into an aerospace company (Rolls-Royce Plc) and an automotive company (Rolls-Royce Motors Limited, including Bentley). Rolls-Royce Motors was subsequently sold to engineering conglomerate Vickers, and in 1998 Vickers sold Rolls-Royce to Volkswagen AG, including Bentley with its name and logos (but not the name "Rolls Royce").