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VW makes $23K on every Porsche sold, more than Bentley or Lamborghini

It's a good time to be in the luxury car business. In Volkswagen Group's financial report for the 2013 fiscal year, it is revealed that that Porsche enjoyed an operating margin of 18 percent. That means the Stuttgart brand made on average about $23,200 per car sold, according to BusinessWeek. Bentley wasn't far behind, and Audi (which was combined with Lamborghini) posted a 10.1 percent margin. This compares to only around 2.9 percent for the Volkswagen brand.
"Luxury brands are on fire," said Dave Sullivan, an industry analyst at AutoPacific. He said that the average profit margin is between six and eight percent. Brands like Porsche and Bentley have the benefit of competing in rarefied markets. Buyers looking at one their vehicles have fewer models to shop against and don't care as much about price. They can also charge more for options, which further boosts income, according to BusinessWeek.
In a way, we should be more impressed by the continued success from Audi. Its models generally have direct competitors in every segment from the other premium automakers. Plus, their buyers aren't the captains of industry who are shopping for a Bentley. Still, the Four Rings is leading rivals in sales so far this year.

Use your Lamborghini Aventador to roast weenies

The Lamborghini Aventador is more than an obscenely fast supercar - it's also a ridiculously expensive barbecue. At least, that's what this video would have you believe. SCD-TV shows one of the extra uses for that shiny new Aventador in your driveway, by cooking a sausage while it belches flames out of its back end.
Now, we aren't entirely sure how good the finished sausage will be. After all, we kind of imagine that a ton of fire over such a short period of time would kind of just sear the outside while leaving the inside of the casing undercooked. Maybe the Aventador would be better suited to roasting marshmallows. There's also the question of just what's been spewed onto the hot dog by the exhaust of the Aventador. Besides not being too tasty, we aren't sure it'd really be a safe sausage to eat.
Check out the full video below to see something far beyond the average grill.

Lamborghini and Bentley may hold off on SUVs so VW can conserve cash

After surveying the European economic scene, Volkswagen may have decided now is not the time to launch utility vehicles with Bentley and Lamborghini badges. Bentley officials say they will continue to push for support for the EXP 9 F and Lamborghini CEO Stephan Winkelman has said planning for the Urus will continue until VW tells it to stop.
That decision could come on November 23, when VW's board will vote on the company's budget for equipment, factories and vehicles. With VW's sales slowing and the Euro economy slumping further, some industry watchers say the company is more likely to build its cash reserves than to introduce super-expensive luxury SUVs or crossovers.
"Such vehicles are anything but obligatory during a crisis," says Frankfurt-based Equinet AG analyst Tim Schuldt in a new Automotive News Europe story. "Delaying their launch would be no drama but help save costs."