Bentley Lost 88% of Its Profit — Here's WHY

Summary

Bentley’s profits have fallen sharply from their 2022 peak as several pressures converged: declining demand in key markets, the phase-out of signature engines before its first electric car is ready, and repeated delays and cancellations in its electrification plan. The new electric model is intended to help reset the business, but it is due in 2027, shares its platform and battery with a much cheaper Porsche, and is currently the only fully electric Bentley planned before the end of the decade.

Bentley remains profitable, and customers who are still buying are spending more on customization. But the company’s shrinking margins, job cuts, and reliance on Volkswagen Group decisions raise questions about whether its new product strategy can restore growth.

Strategy and execution

• Beyond 100: CEO Adrian Hallmark introduced the strategy in 2020, aiming to make all Bentleys electric by 2030. Bentley committed £2.5 billion over 10 years, planned its first EV for 2025, and promised a new electric model each year thereafter.
• Repeatedly revised plan: The first EV was delayed to 2026 and then 2027. The all-electric target moved from 2030 to 2035, and Bentley later stopped giving a firm end date for combustion-engine production.
• Platform dependency: Bentley’s future EV range was to use a Volkswagen Group platform developed with Porsche. After Porsche delayed the platform into the 2030s, up to four planned electric Bentleys were abandoned. The transcript puts the associated cancellation costs and commitments at about £1.7 billion, shared within the group.
• Portfolio transition gap: Bentley ended production of the Mulsanne and its 6.75-litre V8 in 2020, then ended W12 production in April 2024. Its first EV is not expected with customers until 2027, leaving a gap between the end of the W12 and the arrival of the electric model. In the meantime, new Continental GT and Flying Spur models use V8 plug-in hybrids.
• Leadership transition: Hallmark left in summer 2024 and was replaced by Frank-Steffen Walliser, a former Porsche executive. The video links the change in leadership to a product plan that has had to be reworked substantially.

What changed in the business

• Markets weakened at the same time:
  • China: The video says buyers have pulled back from imported luxury goods. China also lowered the threshold for its additional luxury-car tax from 1.3 million yuan to 900,000 yuan and extended it to EVs, putting every new Bentley in the country above the threshold and adding a stated 10% tax.
  • United States: A 25% tariff on imported cars led Bentley to halt US shipments for about three months. Shipments resumed after a UK–US agreement reduced the tariff to 10% on the first 100,000 British cars per year. Bentley’s CFO had said tariffs would be passed directly to customers.
  • United Kingdom: First-half sales fell from 795 cars in 2022 to 428 two years later. The video attributes pressure in part to wealthy residents leaving Britain amid tax changes.
• Engine identity and product differentiation: The Mulsanne’s long-running V8 and the Continental GT’s W12 were central to Bentley’s traditional proposition. The video argues that replacing them with hybrids and EVs makes it harder to communicate what differentiates a Bentley beyond craftsmanship, materials, and its badge.
• The new electric Bentley: The model is reported to have up to 875 horsepower, a 113 kWh battery, and a range of up to 375 miles. It is due to be built in Crewe, supported by a £350 million site investment. Its listed starting price is £173,300, or £199,300 for the more powerful S model.
• Competitive positioning: The electric Bentley shares its platform and battery with the electric Porsche Cayenne, which the video says starts at about £83,000 in Britain. The comparison highlights a value-proposition challenge: Bentley must persuade customers that its hand-finished interior, materials, craftsmanship, and brand justify the price premium.
• The EV is not yet a full product family: With the other planned electric models cancelled, the new car is described as Bentley’s only fully electric model planned before the end of the decade. The next generation of other models is expected to be plug-in hybrid.

Key metrics cited

• Profit: £333 million in the first half of 2022 versus about £40 million in the first half of 2026—an 88% decline.
• Annual operating profit: About £600 million in 2022, £500 million in 2023, £315 million in 2024, and £186 million in 2025. The video says 2025 profit was down 42%.
• First half of 2026: 4,211 deliveries, down almost 14%; revenue down 12%; operating margin of 4.5%.
• 2022 peak: 15,174 cars sold, with record operating profit. The average amount generated per car was reported at £178,000, up more than £20,000 in a year, helped by customization through Mulliner.
• Job reductions: About 275 positions—roughly 6% of a 4,600-person workforce—including about 150 permanent office roles.
• Lamborghini comparison: In the same first half of 2026, Lamborghini delivered 5,422 cars and earned nearly £340 million in profit—over eight times Bentley’s roughly £40 million. The video estimates about £63,000 in profit per Lamborghini versus less than £10,000 per Bentley.
• Ongoing positives: Bentley remained profitable, and Mulliner sales rose as continuing buyers spent more per car. The petrol V8, rear-wheel-drive Continental Supersports was reported sold out.

Business takeaways and practical implications

• Align the product transition with the phase-out of legacy products. Bentley ended two defining engines years before its EV arrives. The case illustrates the commercial risk of removing established products before replacement offerings are ready.
• Reduce exposure to simultaneous market shocks. China, the US, and the UK all weakened, while tariffs and tax changes further affected demand and pricing. The experience highlights the importance of contingency planning for concentrated market exposure.
• Control dependencies on group-level technology decisions. Bentley’s EV roadmap was affected by delays to a platform developed elsewhere in Volkswagen Group, leaving it with cancelled products and costs it did not control.
• Make the premium proposition tangible. Bentley’s challenge is to show why its craftsmanship and customization justify a large premium over a technically related Porsche—especially when an electric motor offers less of the distinctive engine experience buyers traditionally associated with the brand.
• For buyers: The video advises owners of late Mulsannes and W12 cars to understand that they represent the end of those engine lines, without assuming every example will become valuable. It also cautions used-car buyers that maintenance, parts, tyres, and insurance remain expensive even when purchase prices have depreciated.
• For Crewe and its suppliers: The success of the new EV matters beyond Bentley’s sales: the factory employs about 4,600 people, with additional jobs in its supply chain. The video frames the model’s commercial performance as important to Crewe’s longer-term production future.

Presenters and sources

• Presenter: Unnamed narrator, The Sleeper List.
• Sources referenced in the video: Bentley and Volkswagen Group company figures and announcements; Audi’s first-half 2026 reporting; comments attributed to Adrian Hallmark and Bentley’s chief financial officer; and commentary on the new electric model from Top Gear and design press.