The term Volkswagen means "people's car" in German, and that is mostly what
the brand sells stylish, well engineered cars that are still relatively
affordable.
Volkswagen usually leaves the task of selling pricey sports cars, luxury
rides and super cars to its sister brands such as Porsche, Audi and
Bugatti.
But there was at least one time Volkswagen tried to elbow its way into the
luxury car market and it failed miserably, especially in the United
States.
The Volkswagen Phaeton was, by most accounts, a marvelous car, but it was
expensive.
In 2004, pricing in the U.S.
started at sixty four thousand six hundred dollars for the version with
the eight cylinder engine.
A 12 cylinder version started at around eighty three thousand five hundred
fifteen dollars.
It was widely reported to be a pet project of Ferdinand Piëch, a scion of
Volkswagen's founding Porsche Piëch family and a longtime Volkswagen Group
executive who has been regarded as very much a larger than life
personality in the automotive world.
Piëch had held key roles at Porsche and Audi and over the years
demonstrated a taste for high quality and high priced cars.
He was largely behind Volkswagen's acquisition of French super car maker
Bugatti, British luxury brand Bentley and the Italian super car maker
Lamborghini.
With the fate on, Piëch wanted to design a vehicle that would be nothing
less than the best car in the world, and he wanted it to bear the
Volkswagen badge.
The Phaeton was meant to lift Volkswagen to the level of luxury German car
makers such as Mercedes Benz and BMW.
The problem was, simply, that U.S.
customers did not want to spend sixty five thousand dollars or more on a
Volkswagen.
The name itself of the people's car implies that it's supposed to be
something for the masses and yet here he was trying to create a car under
that brand to compete directly with Mercedes Benz.
And it just it was a car that just never really fit the brand as good as it
was. And it did a little better in Europe for a time than it ever did here
and never, ever sold to any in any huge numbers here.
To be fair, the Phaeton was said to be very well built.
It had all sorts of luxury features, many of which were quite advanced for
the time and some of which are still rare.
For example, the car had a dehumidifier in the cabin to prevent the windows
from fogging.
Piëch, who had a background in engineering, had reportedly handed down a
mostly secret list of 10 specifications.
Many of his own engineers said would be impossible to meet.
One publicized spec insisted that the car be capable of driving 186 miles
per hour all day in one hundred twenty two degree weather and still
maintain an internal temperature of seventy one point six degrees
Fahrenheit.
Reviewers acknowledged the craftsmanship and quality of materials in the
car. The interior is solidly built using the finest leather and wood.
Volkswagen could find.
Even the production of the car sounded premium.
It was built in Volkswagen's transparent factory, a glass walled plant with
hardwood floors that also functions as a kind of museum.
Volkswagen uses to showcase its latest innovations.
The Phaeton shared the production line with the Bentley Continental, a car
with which the Phaeton also shared a chassis.
But Volkswagen sold only three thousand three hundred fifty four fattens in
the United States, and the company pulled the car from the U.S.
and just a few years.
Although sales were stronger in Europe and China, it remains one of
Volkswagen's most controversial vehicles.
After all, the brand was meant to bring style and engineering to the
masses. The car was also up against entrenched competitors from BMW,
Mercedes and even Volkswagen's own Audi brand.
Not that it stood much of a chance.
The fate hands best year in the U.S.
was in 2004 when it sold one thousand nine hundred thirty nine units.
That same year, Audi sold five thousand nine hundred forty three of its
full size eight sedans.
BMW sold sixteen thousand one hundred fifty five seven series sedans.
Mercedes sold twenty thousand four hundred sixty S-classes and Lexus sold
thirty two thousand three hundred seventy three full size LS cars.
That same year.
Of course, it is understandable that manufacturers want to go upmarket and
there are cars today that well-made as they maybe sometimes seem to sit a
bit awkwardly with their stable mates to many of those who follow the
industry.
But anyone who wants to buy a 2004 12 cylinder luxury Volkswagen sedan can
now have a on for less than twelve thousand dollars.