Volkswagen’s priority in 2011 will be on improving quality of core products
By Steph, 14 Jan, 2011. 0 Comments
2011 Vw Jetta
Volkswagen AG will be focusing more on the quality of its core products and will not be expanding its vehicle lineup in the U.S. beyond what it has set out to do. At the 2011 Automotive News World Congress, Jonathan Browning, head of Volkswagen Group of America, admitted that the company “lost its bearings” and became “more of a marginal brand.” He said that VW will have to re-examine itself and resolve the issues that it is “tripping over” in the U.S., such as pricing, climate control, seat size and/or rear legroom.
For 2011, VW is hoping that the Volkswagen Jetta and 2012 Passat would succeed at increasing U.S. sales. In 2010, VW sold 12,497 Passats, the lowest-volume car in the brand's U.S. lineup except for the Eos convertible. Meanwhile, the Jetta was the topseller in the U.S. for VW with sales of 123,213 units in 2010, a nearly 14% increase over 2009.
Browning didn’t give a time frame but he revealed that VW will be offering a diesel version of the redesigned Passat to the U.S. The diesel model sales of VW in 2010 had increased by 20% compared to the previous year. [via autonews - sub. required]
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