VW boss says Audi must make cars in U.S. to meet sales goal
In 2007 Audi set itself a very lofty goal of more than doubling its U.S. sales to 200,000 units by 2015. Without a significant turnaround in the economy, that goal appears increasingly unlikely to be be met, but everyone needs a dream right? With that dream in mind, VW CEO Martin Winterkorn told a gathering of officials from Tennessee recently that the four-ringed brand must build cars in the U.S. Winterkorn said a mid-sized car targeted specifically at the U.S. market would be the product, but a location and timing are still undetermined. The Volkswagen factory that is being built in Chatanooga, TN is one obvious option. VW will start production there in 2011 with a capacity of 150,000 cars a year, but the plant is being designed with expansion in mind. The possibility of building an additional 100,000 cars there does exist. Winterkorn told the guests that no decisions have been made yet but something would happen in 2009.
[Source: Automotive News, sub. req'd]
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
Jeff Madson 6:42AM (11/06/2008)
Audi does not need to make a US only mid-sized car to meet sales goals. They need to make a car where your service adviser doesn't need to be on your speed dial after 60,000 miles, that will help them reach their US sales goals.
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Mark 7:39AM (11/06/2008)
you obviously know nothing, audi's are extremely reliable, a friend of mine has one that's done over 250k and it still runs like clockwork, and he's not ever that great at maintaining it
notYou 5:38PM (11/06/2008)
Mark - I think the community "wisdom" is that your story is the exception, not the rule.
Even if you factor in that those with complaints are more vocal than those without, the seemingly endless stories of Audi's with maintenance issues appear to create a ratio far above the norm (and VW doesn't do Audi any favors here) - see JD Edwards and True Delta reliability and maintenance reports for additional insight.
Tsunami Racer 11:51AM (11/06/2008)
60,000 miles? try 500 miles on my brand new RS4 before IP lights started flashing and things started rattling. and the dealers are ill equipped to diagnose and repair without countless approvals from corporate. trust me, if VW starts building Audi's in the US, quality can only improve. and that's not saying much.
LMBVette 8:20AM (11/06/2008)
Hey Audi/VW....I know how you can double your US sales.....buy Chrysler! ;-)
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fixitfixitstop 8:48AM (11/06/2008)
How about "no"?
matt 9:16AM (11/06/2008)
As long as they don't replace all the ACHTUNG labels with some lame English equivalent, I'm okay with this.
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mountain 3:08PM (12/02/2008)
Sorry, have to agree with Jeff. 5 major engine repairs on 2007 A4 before 20,000 miles and then 2008 A3 had to be towed at 5000 miles.
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