Was Mees the Only VW AG CEO Talking Sense?
There are obvious mistakes made in the automotive business, yet it seems that those high in the ivory towers of automaker
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| When VW initially announced its V8- and W12-powered Phaeton there were few automotive analysts that didn't ask why? (Photo: Shawn Pisio, American Auto Press) |
Outside of Volkswagen, and I'm sure within its ranks too, there wasn't a car executive, automotive journalist or auto enthusiast in the world that didn't question why the economy brand was entering into the rarified $100K luxury sedan market when it initially announced its V8- and W12-powered Phaeton (see automotive news archive for Nov 7, 2003: VW Bullish on North American Phaeton Sales). After all, the German automaker already owned as many luxury brands as it did economy, including Audi, Bentley, Lamborghini and Bugatti, the former of which would be cannibalized if the Phaeton saw the light of day.
But what goes around seems to come around in the VW family, as the Volkswagen brand was already being parasitically eaten away by VW-owned European nameplates Skoda and Seat, both offering badge-engineered versions of less
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| The Phaeton has been a high-level failure from a sales and publicity standpoint. (Photo: Shawn Pisio, American Auto Press) |
Most analysts shake their heads in disbelief of what parent company Volkswagen AG, was, and still is attempting to accomplish, that is if they can make any sense of it. The Phaeton has been a high-level failure from a sales and publicity standpoint, and despite this the brand is still considering building a midsize BMW 5-Series fighter codenamed C1 (see automotive news archives for Aug 29, 2004: Industry Report: Turmoil in Wolfsburg as Volkswagen's C1 Midsize Luxury Car Delayed). Once again, most auto analysts are expecting the midsize VW luxury model to merely eat into Audi A6 sales, leaving BMW alone to achieve one record breaking sales success after another.