Bentley turns to former Porsche exec for a dose of adrenaline

The bosses at parent company Volkswagen Group knew Bentley needed an injection of adrenaline. The Crewe, England-based brand is navigating the future of electric vehicles and manages a portfolio of models—such as the Continental, the Flying Spur and the Bentayga—that have started to age.

Global sales for Bentley in the first half of 2024 are down 23 percent from a year earlier; total sales numbers last year trailed the record highs of 2021 and ’22.

Adrian Hallmark, the CEO who saw the company through the pandemic, announced his departure for Aston Martin in March.

The ultraluxury brand has now tapped the guy who oversaw both the high-octane world of Porsche Motorsport and the program that gave birth to the Porsche 918 Spyder hybrid supercar in 2010.

Frank-Steffen Walliser became Bentley’s chairman and CEO on July 1. A mechanical engineer by trade, he was the mastermind behind the multiple victories of the Porsche RS Spyder in the American Le Mans Series, as well as Porsche GT production cars such as the 911 GT3.

The Bentley Bentayga tops Walliser’s to-do list. The $203,900 SUV will constitute roughly 30 percent of total sales this year, according to a spokesperson. That is down from 2023, when Bentley’s top-selling model accounted for 44 percent of total sales volume.

A $234,400 extended-wheelbase version, which started deliveries in 2022, has generated some excitement, but powertrain and cosmetic upgrades are critical, according to Walliser.

“That is on top of our priority list, because we know the SUV segment is still growing,” he said during a wide-ranging interview on Sept. 21 near Zurich, his first time sitting with media in his new role. “So, yes, we have to bring some freshness to the car. The rest is timing.”

Walliser was chosen for the position after spearheading a cross-brand collaboration at parent company VW that involved both Porsche and Bentley. (He declined to comment on the project, which has yet to be announced).

Close relationships with VW and Porsche CEO Oliver Blume and the powerful, motorsports-minded Porsche family also helped his rise, he said, as did his extensive background in developing advanced software at Porsche.

“Product is our biggest lever,” Walliser said. “You can communicate whatever you want, but the final proof comes by the customer, and if he is convinced the product is not good, it will be difficult.”

Bentley’s brand image needs to be “a little bit more precise,” he added: “It comes down to how should [a Bentley] drive? How sporty? Is it effortless? It must not be a soft car, but it must be an easy-to-drive, long-distance-traveling car.”

The company has also recently pivoted away from its long-standing plan to electrify its full portfolio by 2030, instead focusing on a mix of hybrid- and combustion-engine vehicles for the foreseeable future, even as it phased out its W-12 engines earlier this year.

Walliser described the transition to EVs as “a moving target” and said he expects combustion engines will be available from Bentley until at least 2050.

“We are looking at our cadence and our cycle plans saying, OK, what do we have to do in combination with the introduction of an electric car, of more electric cars. How will it look like to our strategy?” Walliser said. “When will we make the final switch to fully electric cars? All of this is under review.”

Bentley remains committed to its next all-new model, a full-electric vehicle due in 2026, Walliser confirmed. He declined to specify which form the new EV would take but said it’s already been decided within the group.

It’s unclear whether it will be similar to the Bentley EXP 12 Speed 6e Concept; that two-door convertible was announced in 2017 and initially promised as early as 2021.

The 771-horsepower Continental GT V-8 hybrid—the fourth generation of the Continental range—will start deliveries in December.