Well as we know the Chinese market is driving things here, hence the new Mao-serati Quattroporte. Fascinating article in this month’s Car magazine (August date, issue 613) about the Bentley Flying Spur, apparently wholly designed with China in mind: they talk to some Chinese buyers: Bentley Beijing is Bentley’s biggest dealership in the world, they sell more than one a day - and all to Chinese buyers, 90% for cash, 80% don’t even take a test drive - they all have drivers and so rear seating is what counts (hence the QP). And the Spur costs 400-500 K pounds locally (after import and luxury taxes). Telling quote relevant to the Levante: “If you could have just one car in China, everyone tells me, it would be an SUV…Rongchang [a Bentley buyer] would consider swopping both his Porsche Cayennes for one from [Bentley]”. Yikes.
From my point of view, bringing out the Levante just after the new Range Rover L405 and the new RR Sport, both of which seem to have hit the nail on the head as the luxury SUV (and have, er, a little history there: my other favourite brand
) seems madness, but it seems China doesn't necessarily think the same way....
(Two page review of the Ghibli in the same issue by the way, they like it in petrol form but think it won’t dent BMW and would buy the Jag XF in preference…)
