VW pauses work on 'limo' - Independent Online
Wolfsburg - Volkswagen is delaying the introduction of the new Phaeton as the automaker seeks to improve returns on the slow-selling luxury sedan by lowering production and material costs, people familiar with the matter said. Even though a new version of one of VW’s least successful models is ready for production, the manufacturer is again reworking the Phaeton, which costs more than three times the mid-sized Passat sedan, said the people, who asked to not be... The 89 650-euro ($101 000) Phaeton, a pet project of engineering-obsessed former chairman Ferdinand Piech, is an anomaly in VW’s lineup of pragmatic sedans, hatchbacks and SUVs. The car is manually assembled in a special facility in Dresden by technicians wearing white uniforms and sometimes white gloves. “There is always the element of the Phaeton being the answer to a question no one ever asked,” said Tim Urquhart, a London-based analyst at market researcher IHS Automotive. Piech, who stepped down in April after a power struggle with CEO Martin Winterkorn, ordered development of the Phaeton to challenge VW engineers and take on the Mercedes-Benz S-Class. While Mercedes sold more than 100 000 S-Class cars last year, VW made about 4 000 Phaetons, a drop of 30 percent. That’s the lowest volume for an existing VW production vehicle, including the Eos convertible, which is being cut. Source: www.iol.co.za
