Volkswagen CEO Pischetsrieder Says Phaeton Styling was a Mistake

For the ex-BMW boss to come clean with the Phaeton's critics, at least with regards to the car's conservative styling and

For Volkswagen CEO Pischetsrieder to come clean with the Phaeton's critics is really saying something. (Photo: Shawn Pisio, American Auto Press)

the need for it to stand out more in the luxury sedan crowd is saying something indeed. Pischetsrieder has been slow to criticize VW's past leader Ferdinand Piëch, the man who pulled him up from CEO oblivion. When leading BMW, Pischetsrieder was dubbed "Man of the Year" for the creative coup of luring Rover Group away from the clutches of Honda, and simultaneously acquiring Land Rover and its highly favored Range Rover brand. Years later, when Rover was losing money hand over fist and Land Rovers had hardly improved in sales volume since its acquisition the move hadn't looked

Product quality problems and questionable brand strategies have really set Volkwagen back in recent years. (Photo: Shawn Pisio, American Auto Press)

quite as spectacular, made look even more dismal when BMW's X5 outsold the entire Land Rover lineup in its first year of production.

Nevertheless Pischetsrieder vehemently defends BMW's acquisition of Rover, insisting "BMW didn't have the patience to solve the Rover problems." He added, "Dr. Piëch called me at home the day after I left BMW and offered me a job."

And the rest is history. After a year and a half of make-work projects within VW due to a non-compete clause, Pischetsrieder went back on top, guiding one of the world's largest and most influential automakers out of the most significant sales slump it has ever experienced, product quality problems that would have long since destroyed an automaker with less brand loyalty, and questionable brand strategies that parasitically undermine the automaker's overall progress.