Audi of America President Johan de Nysschen is a big fan of diesels (no surprise), and during a recent chat with veteran auto journo Lawrence Ulrich, de Nysschen imparted a few choice morsels on the pitfalls of electric cars, with an extra helping of wrath aimed at the Chevrolet Volt.
To start, he said the Volt is "a car for idiots." Adding that they're too expensive and, "No one is going to pay a $15,000 premium for a car that competes with a (Toyota) Corolla. So there are not enough idiots who will buy it." He predicted that the Volt will fall flat, which will cause the federal government to step in and subsidize the Volt in order to save face and boost sales.
And what about pure electric vehicles? According to de Nysschen, "they're for the intellectual elite who want to show what enlightened souls they are." Maybe de Nysschen should check with the corporate mothership on that last point, considering Audi's set to unveil its own EV concept this month at the Frankfurt Motor Show. Whoops.
[Source: MSN Exhaust Notes | Image: Saul Loeb/AFP/Getty]
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To start, he said the Volt is "a car for idiots." Adding that they're too expensive and, "No one is going to pay a $15,000 premium for a car that competes with a (Toyota) Corolla. So there are not enough idiots who will buy it." He predicted that the Volt will fall flat, which will cause the federal government to step in and subsidize the Volt in order to save face and boost sales.
And what about pure electric vehicles? According to de Nysschen, "they're for the intellectual elite who want to show what enlightened souls they are." Maybe de Nysschen should check with the corporate mothership on that last point, considering Audi's set to unveil its own EV concept this month at the Frankfurt Motor Show. Whoops.
[Source: MSN Exhaust Notes | Image: Saul Loeb/AFP/Getty]
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