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I am starting to disagree as the small car market is getting very big, especially in Canada. The Echo (Yaris), Accent, Aveo, Wave, Rio, Mini and Smart are all selling very well and I think with the growth of cars like Golfs and Civics, there is an opening for some smaller cars again. That is why many companies are planning on bringing new small cars such as the Honda Fit (Jazz) and Nissan Versa (Micra) here and I think VW would be foolish to miss out on this. There is also talks of VW and Daimler Chrysler sharing the new Polo platfrom to further expand the subcompact market in North America, especially with the death of the Neon. Toyota will sell over 30,000 Echos in Canada this year with this segment continuing to grow so I think (and so do some auto journalists) that a 2007 introduction of the VW Polo here is a definite possibility.
Blair Former Cars: '12 Fiat 500, '10 VW GTI, '05 Smart Fortwo, '96 VW Jetta GLX, '02 VW GTI 337.........
VW would be foolish to miss out, but we all know VW is a too little too late kind of company..I'm doubtful too, just because they don't take hints, and they are very poor at reading markets....That said, the TDi has always been VW's smartest product...
The problem is that the Golf is really percieved in North America as a compact, and launching something else will take away sales from the Golf. The last thing any car company wants to do is launch two cars at the same time aiming at the same demographic segment.
I think it is more likely that VW will simply position their marketing for the Golf V and GTI V launch such that it competes with the Yaris.
With VW's engine selections it should do well among both those looking for a sporty compact as well as those looking to save gas money.
I read on autoblog that VW aims to reduce warranty claims by a huge amount in 2006/2007. They are going to try to do this through increased quality, and so this may also mean focusing on existing platforms rather than introducing new platforms. They actually postponed the Eos launch for this very reason - to instead have their factories concentrate on increasing quality levels for well-established models.
I hope that this drive by VW to reduce warranty spending does not cause pressure on dealerships to refuse even more warranty work, because people are starting to notice...
Yes but how can you say a car is in the same class one one will cost 16,000 and the other near 30,000??? I think the price gap is one problem and remember Golf Vs are even bigger than IVs, so size is an issue. I am not saying that VW will make the right move but all signs should point to yes!
Blair Former Cars: '12 Fiat 500, '10 VW GTI, '05 Smart Fortwo, '96 VW Jetta GLX, '02 VW GTI 337.........
Yes but how can you say a car is in the same class one one will cost 16,000 and the other near 30,000??? I think the price gap is one problem and remember Golf Vs are even bigger than IVs, so size is an issue. I am not saying that VW will make the right move but all signs should point to yes!
Yes that is a good point, but I think that it will still impact golf sales - a hatch with the same/similar engine for half the money, hmmm why buy a Golf V...
I definitely agree that its harder to pass off the Golf V as small.
Yes that is a good point, but I think that it will still impact golf sales - a hatch with the same/similar engine for half the money, hmmm why buy a Golf V...
I definitely agree that its harder to pass off the Golf V as small.
I am a big Hot Hatch fan, if I was to buy another new car and it would only be a hot hatch. If VW offered both cars here I would get the Polo, so there would be a lost sale for a Golf.
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