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- VW will launch an all-new Passat on Thursday. But with the “middle” of Europe’s car market being squeezed by both premium and low-cost brands – and the large sedan segment sufferingly acutely from small sales – the Passat’s launch looks to be difficult.
- Nissan will build the new Infiniti Q30 and QX30 small cars at its Sunderland factory in the UK. Production could also move to the new joint factory being built with Daimler in Mexico.
- Renault could overtake Opel as Europe’s second most popular brand.
- Mazda could revive the rotary…but only as a range-extender for a PHEV Mazda2.
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New Passat on Thursday!
Does that mean we’ll get it over here by Fall 2015?
So is the passat being moved into fullsize category? The current one isnt very big.
No, they are actually making it SMALLER.
So why are they concerned about the launch of large cars when they are launching a small midsize?
“the Passat’s launch looks to be difficult”
Probably they’ll launch it like any other car is launched. It just might not be a great sales success.
That’s what I’d call a “difficult launch”
Derek,
I’m gonna have to go ahead and ask you to adjust some of your language. You see, around here, we don’t say “difficult”; we say “challenging”. Because people like a challenge – that sounds exciting and motivating.
And be sure to get that TPS report done by Friday.
Oh oh, and I’m gonna need you to go ahead and come in on Sunday too, mkay?
Can I keep my red stapler?
Fail – you didn’t use the words “going forward”.
Do you work in GM engineering?
“You see, around here, we don’t say “difficult”; we say “challenging”. Because people like a challenge – that sounds exciting and motivating.”
Just what we need around here, office clichés! Flush them all, please!
How about Derek merely saying, regarding the new Passat’s launch: “Good luck with that”?
What’s happening?
Derek, if you could move your desk to the basement, that would be great. Make sure to grab a flashlight and some pest killer.
Volkswagen has forgotten the first rule of business by shrinking the Passat- is this good for the Company?
Now, Milton, just pass the cake.
Blast-off!
I got here too late to make a “that’d be greaaatt” joke, but I did roll my windows up while playing rap music.
Well… it’s hard to be a gansta.
What the **** does PC Load Letter mean?
I spent my early career as a desktop support tech.
The PC in “PC LOAD LETTER” is the Printer Control software on HP LaserJet printers.
Load, of course, is asking for the operator to put something in the printer ehichj, in this case, is letter sized paper (instead of legal or A4 sized paper).
“The printer control software requires regular paper in order to proceed” is what the fuck that means. I’ve been waiting for years for someone to explain that to who isn’t a fellow IT guy. Or Michael Bolton – I explain it to him every time I watch that movie.
There is also a Printer Control Languge for HP printers called PCL. As far as I know, it was interpreted by the same PC unit+software that demanded the paper from its human masters.
BTW, some HP printers say “PC LOAD LEGAL”, and there are so many fun ways to read that one. It always seems like it might involve politely drinking with the legal department… :-)
I’ve worked with computers all my life, and I was almost correct in determining the message.
I thought PC meant “Paper Cartridge”, as in the the tray. I interpreted it as “Load Letter Paper in the Tray”. Close enough.
I still use an HP 4+ in my computer recycling office. It’s old, but over 300,000 pages later- it still churns them out.
I don’t know about printing on an A4, though. I drive an A6 and I can fit the printer in the back. Wouldn’t trying to print on an Audi result in a nasty paper jam ;-)
A new Passat won’t stop VW’s tailspin in the US. They are totally lost.
Mazda needs to take automotive Chantix for their Wankel addiction; they just can’t seem to get over this bad habit.
We can’t hear you over the “brap brap brap brap brap brao” sound coming from our cars.
Mazda needs to drop the wank(er) advertisement writing.
Their new commercial with the rubbish music in the background.
COMMITMENT. CHARACTER. THIS IS THE MAZDA WAY.
Or whatever the hell it says. It was corny AF.
“This is the Mazda way.”
It is corny, almost like it’s trying to present a Japanese-artisan quality where there isn’t one. Still, Mazda’s latest offerings are impressively engineered. The company has some really nice features and should figure out a better way to advertise them and give its cars the attention they deserve.
I agree, something more serious than Zoom Zoom, and less serious than “Mazda Artisan Vehicle Character Society.”
You mean trying to equate Mazdas to the achievements of Jackie Robinson and Bruce Lee isn’t an effective ad campaign?
If you’ll excuse me, I’m off to buy a Lincoln. The TV told me Katharine Hepburn and Louis Armstrong owned them, so that must mean they’re still good.
Right?
Jackie Robinson, F1 driver right?
/s
Yeah right — he’s that Wee Scot who won several championships and yells over the drone of a Cosworth
Its not even clear if this will replace the US Passat. Remember that the US Passat and Euro Passat are different, and the article doesn’t make it clear which is being replaced or if the product offering will be unified again.
It won’t.
The Reuters article that is linked is clearer: This is the Euro Passat. The US MQB Passat is due to be revamped in 2016. IIRC, the current Euro Passat is based on the prior B6 architecture, so this new Euro Passat will be Europe’s first intro to an MQB-platform Passat.
It could be a great strategy. VW can do something BMW can’t, which is share interior finish parts, etc. with Audi to make for a more luxurious-feeling Passat while reducing the cost per unit for those components.
Additional item:
The “GM dealerships are deserted” story is debunked with a 1% sales increase over last June.
That %1 bump for GM, was it retail? Or fleet? (including, most likely, sales to gov agencies)
Very little fleet goes to government. Most of it goes to rental.
Chevy June retail was down 1.4% (although GM June retail was up 0.7%.)
Guys, I’m thinking that this is the Euro-spec Passat, not the NMS (Chinese/North American) one…
Both Euro Passat and NMS are available in China. There are two separate VW JVs in China, SAIC-VW and FAW-VW, so one Passat model for each.
Huh. Didn’t know that. Those crazy joint-ventures mix up everything…
That slightly makes sense in that the Chinese love to show off their wealth by hiring drivers. The limo like back seat of the NMS would be perfect for that sort of situation.
The article is very obviously about the Euro-Passat, not the NA one. Which means they will sell about 10 sedans and eleventy-billion station wagons, based on my recent trips to Germany.