Bentley Motors has appointed Wolfgang Dürheimer as its new chairman and chief executive.

He succeeds Dr Franz-Josef Paefgen who will retire after over eight years at the helm but has agreed to remain in an advisory capacity to Bentley and as a consultant to the Volkswagen Group.

Dürheimer, who joins Bentley from Porsche where he was executive vice-president, research and development, will start in his new role on February 1, 2011.

Dürheimer started his career in the motor industry with BMW in 1986 and has held positions as a product manager and also head of product development in the motorcycle division. He later became a member of the senior management team responsible for research, development and project management. In 1999, Dürheimer moved to Porsche, taking management responsibility for the 911 product line.