Porsche, Bentley and Bugatti will share costs to help the VAG Group

The VAG Group will rely on the cooperation of its brands Porsche and Bentley to cut costs following the dieselgate scandal. The company’s two manufacturers, together with the supercar brand Bugatti, will share costs to achieve annual savings of up to 100 million euros.

According to Porsche’s CEO, Oliver Blume, “it is a very well thought-out and detailed plan,” and will begin next year. This cooperation between the two brands will cover areas such as component development, financial services, joint sales strategies and quality assurance, the CEO said at the annual press conference of the sports car manufacturer.

The first result of this collaboration will be seen next year with the launch of the Continental GT from Bentley. The sportiest model of the British brand will use the MSB platform (a modular structure made largely of aluminium) of the second-generation Porsche Panamera.

At the Geneva Motor Show, Bentley stated its intention to create electric and luxury vehicles with the presentation of the EXP 12 Speed 6e. In addition, the brand plans to introduce a hybrid version of each model in the coming years, said the brand’s CEO, Wolfgang Duerheimer. According to some rumours, these hybrid and electric models could also use the technology that Porsche is developing for its first zero-emission car, the Mission E.

In 2016, Porsche increased its operating margin to 17.4%, while the profitability of Bentley fell by 5.5%, a decline driven by the manufacturing costs that they aim to reduce through the partnership of the German firm’s brands. Moreover, this collaboration could help with the claims Volkswagen still faces over the dieselgate case in the US, Germany and other parts of Europe.