“Volkswagen Panzer. The most lebensraum in it’s class”

Start with Lack, Ektorp, Gullhomen, and Leksvik as candidates.

Das Deutsch ist schon gut! Gulf stream = Golfstrom. I think they just made up that Golf = Gulf stream thing though. Volkswagen’s first FWD hatchback was called the Polo, the larger Golf came out a few years later. Is there a Polo wind?

@improvement_needed
how about a 75 mpg polo?
or a 60 mpg rabbit/jetta?

Doesn’t exist even in Europe. The best VW seems to be able to do is a 60 mpg Polo and a 52 mpg Golf.

But they call it the Rabbit here now, so it’s moot in the US.

If not the sport of Golf, than why the dimpled shifter knob?

VW has some of the best small cars in the world (Golf/Polo/Lupo), but let Honda and Toyota scoop them by a couple of years with cars like the Fit and the Yaris. At least the current Golf is reasonably priced at $15k base, but it’s still a money-loser from everything I’ve read.

Anyway, dealers are supposed to have ONE new diesel test model on lots in may, with customer deliveries to begin in August. I’m excited to drive one and maybe pick one up used in a couple years.

what is VW smoking

how about playing to your strengths?
if you can sell small, roomy, sturdy, safe and fuel efficient cars outside of NA, perhaps you should try selling them in NA?

how about a 75 mpg polo?
or a 60 mpg rabbit/jetta?

if VWNA was on the ball, they’d have had their new diesel available for sale in the USA from DAY 1 of the new diesel regulations across their entire model line. if people are willing to ’stoop’ to buy a ford focus that gets 35 mpg, I’m pretty sure they’d buy a VW that gets 50 mpg…

Yes, I’m referring to those 3 things, along with VW dealers. Because if you don’t go to a VW dealer to have your car worked on, you really don’t get the full “Vaseline required” experience.

Keep in mind that I do like VWs. I currently own two Jetta TDIs and I have also owned two older Jetta diesels. The only way to effectively care for a VW is through an independent shop that you can trust, or do it yourself. I let a dealer touch my car a year after I bought it to do an alignment and a state inspection, but after that experience, never again!

I think VWs can be durable and reliable with the proper preventative maintenance, but they are definitely not cars that you just drive and forget cars. VW really needs to address their dealership problems, and their reliability problems if they want to hit their 800000 car a year goal in 10 years.

A girl I work with recently got her 2001 Golf paid off, and she traded it on a leased Versa not long after. I asked her why, and it’s because she couldn’t afford to keep fixing the Golf. So far my TDIs have been good cars, but I know there are still a lot of lemons out there, which will keep turning people off and going to other brands.

My understanding is that Golf is also a wind (gulf stream), aber mein Deutsch ist nicht so gut…

I was mightily impressed by Nissan’s use of the how-the-Hell-do-we-pronounce-it Qashgai (even though I was pissed they didn’t do anything for the actual tribe, which could use the money). Along the same line, I’m partial to ancient Greek tribal names…

Hyrcanian (a perfect hire car?)
Parthian (though speakers with a speech impediment will be greatly displeased)
Chorasmian (too chloraseptic?)
Sogdian (sounds suitably rude)
AEgli (now we’re getting there)
Sacae (Hawkeye Pierce’s cousin)
Sargartii (bless you!)
Sattagydian (sounds like a winner)
Apartae (RSA might take offense)
Thamaenean (Harry Potter fans rejoice!)

brettc, Are you referring to the quality, durability and reliability of VWs? If so, I’m entirely in agreement. They ARE fun to drive but driving it mostly to the shop kinda takes the luster off the experience. Not to mention watching it get towed there.

Let’s see.
Nomads… VW Qashqai? No, doesn’t work. VW Tibetan? Could be a problem on the Chinese market. VW Kazahk? What would Borat drive? VW Sarakatsani? Better. VW Yörük? Umlauterrific. VW Hun? Excellent.

Winds… VW Sama? VW Khamsin? VW Buran? VW Pampero? VW Zonda? VW Monsoon?

Sports… VW Soccer (it’s a 7-seater after all)

Animal name mashups… let’s see. The Tiguan is a mashup of “Leguan”, which is German for iguana, and “Tiger”, which is German for tiger.
For a 7-seater, we need to focus on roominess and intelligent solution. Let’s see, elephants are big, that’s good, and dolphins are intelligent. So what about naming it the Elephin?