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AUTOS: Bentley SUV Reportedly A Go
The board of parent company Volkswagen has approved the ultraluxury vehicle for production, according to a German newspaper report.
AutoWeek  | http://www.autoweek.com/  |  Posted February 05, 2013   Wolfsburg (GER)
The Bentley SUV reportedly OKed for production will bear no resemblance to the controversial EXP 9F concept unveiled last year, according to the automaker's CEO. (Photo: Bentley)
Bentley's new SUV has been approved for production by parent Volkswagen, a German newspaper reports citing internal sources.

VW's supervisory board has agreed to build an ultraluxury vehicle based on the EXP 9F concept unveiled at the 2012 Geneva motor show, according to Handelsblatt.

The SUV, internally codenamed Falcon, will retail starting at 200,000 euros ($271,000), the paper said. The model will likely be built at VW's plant in Slovakia, with final completion at Bentley's plant in Crewe, England.

Bentley would not confirm the report.

"We are still waiting for the official green light from Volkswagen," a spokeswoman told Automotive News Europe, adding that a decision in favor of production looks "very positive."

Bentley CEO Wolfgang Schreiber said at the Detroit Auto Show in January that the SUV's design will resemble the rest of the Bentley brand rather than following the controversial design of the EXP 9F concept.

The SUV is expected to launch within three years, he said, and will be powered by an eight-cylinder engine and possibly an optional W12.

The SUV will play a key role in Bentley's growth ambitions. Last year, the brand's global unit sales increased 22 percent to 8,510 cars. Bentley is targeting sales of up to 5,000 SUVs per year, according to Handelsblatt.

The vehicle would join similar models planned by Lamborghini and Maserati aimed at tapping into a growing market for ultraluxury SUVs among the super-rich in countries such as China and Russia.

This story originally appeared at Autoweek.com.
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