Pich: Stop Me, I'm Full

Edward Niedermeyer
by Edward Niedermeyer

Volkswagen will almost certainly finish the year as the second-largest automaker by volume… and if it wants to take the top spot, it will do so on sales, not acquisitions. Having gobbled an extraordinary number of acquisitions over the past several decades, including Bentley, Lamborghini, Bugatti, Italdesign and Karmann, VW’s monstrous appetite appears to be waning. And no wonder: the latest mouthful, a partnership with Suzuki, has gone sour and recent lustful glances at Alfa have drawn sassy rebukes from Fiat’s Sergio Marchionne. Accordingly, VW’s Chairman Ferdinand Piech tells Bloomberg [via AN [sub]] that no more acquisitions are planned and that

We’re big enough

Of course, this is also coming from the company that’s been struggling to swallow Porsche for the last several years. Once that deal is complete, we’ll check back on Herr Piech’s appetite. Because in an industry built on scale, you never know when hunger will strike…


Edward Niedermeyer
Edward Niedermeyer

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  • Hreardon Hreardon on Sep 14, 2011

    Volkswagen's more recent acquisitions, ie: Lamborghini, Bentley and Bugatti, were more nameplate acquisitions than anything else. VW essentially bought the name and restarted them from scratch - with mostly their own people, their own systems, their own way. They are also more or less niche brands with very, very low volume. It's easier to integrate and enforce your desires through companies like that then much more integrated, closely held and larger organizations such as Alfa. So far, VW has shown great adeptness at keeping its brands from overlapping and cannibalizing too much. The sick child, SEAT, is finally showing signs of recovery and a decent path forward. With the slow slog that is the Porsche acquisition and the blowup with Suzuki, no doubt they have their hands full.

  • Willman Willman on Sep 14, 2011

    'ow about just a leetle meent, eet's only a waferr theen...

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