Volkswagen supercar brands Bentley and Lamborghini have dropped out of the Paris Motor Show next week.
One year after admitting it utilized illegal software application to rig diesel emissions tests, Volkswagen is cutting costs throughout the group to money a tactical shift in the business and to cover billions of euros in fines and payments connected to its scandal.
Bentley stated on Monday it was skipping the crowded September 29-30 event and would rather concentrate on little events to market more directly to buyers. Lamborghini stated it was revising technique relating to car show participation, including the choice of areas where the Italian brand wishes to be.
Car-show extravaganzas cost millions of euros as brands, particularly luxury nameplates, aim to outshine one another. Volkswagen will do without a glitzy gala in Paris and rather present fixed cars with a focus of executive speeches on style, a spokesman stated.
“A crisis can result in marginalization, however it can also mark the turning point for something much better, for a real change of tack,” CEO Matthias Mueller informed a staff meeting in Wolfsburg on September 14. “We have to rejig the group” to enhance success and catch up on brand-new innovations, he stated.
Other automakers missing this year’s Paris event include Ford, Volvo and Aston Martin. But besides cutting expenses on extravagant program stands, producers are progressively courting purchasers through blogs and internet-based events.
The world is constantly changing and Lamborghini, as a brand of luxury extremely sports cars operating globally in a niche market, intends to expect such modifications, the automaker said.