[CARDEEP]

IMO people in India were more than happy with the Superb (as others have pointed out) than plonking few more lacs for a Passat. The superb had its strenghts - rear legroom, almost equal brand image (despite VW trying to project itself premium over Czech sister brand), & much lower price.

Most people would have bought the cheapest variant of the German trio for another couple of lacs, over the VAG German brand with lower image. The diesel engine that was shared with Jetta didn't help either.

I feel Skoda cars are more lively to handle & enjoy the drives as compared to the VW cars, which has been the nemesis of its premium strategy & of course the modals/ variants it would offer to customer. Afterall for most Indians, the most popular car from VW was the Beetle & not any Executive or Premium sedan.

The buyer profile has changed over last few years & many middle class families are buying the cars in the range when the head of family's age is barely around 40, & at that age the preference from the vehicle is quite different, which Skoda would fulfill at a lower cost, ... part of which could be spent on costly service & repairs later (another food for thought).

IMO they should go the Hyundai way, sell cars with features & latest innovations & support the customers like anything to justify the premium it wishes to command, & let brands like Porsche, Bugatti, Bentley & Lamborghini woo the premium product buyers.

[microaubin]

Even though several members in T-bhp had pointed out the imminent death of the Passat, there were no real news until now.

Recently I have been seeing quite a number of new passats around my town and even I had considered one very recently but thank God I didn't buy, since its being discontinued.

However I still believe its a fairly good product and VFM with a tad less snob value. Its got lot more toys than the big 3 but solely let down with zero marketing for the Passat. VW has always focused more on the Polo and Vento .

[a4anurag]

Originally Posted by microaubin

Even though several members in T-bhp had pointed out the imminent death of the Passat, there were no real news until now. Recently I have been seeing quite a number of new passats around my town and even I had considered one very recently but thank God I didn't buy, since its being discontinued.

If you buy the Passat tomorrow, will you keep it for the next 10 years?

Originally Posted by microaubin

However I still believe its a fairly good product and VFM with a tad less snob value. Its got lot more toys than the big 3 but solely let down with zero marketing for the Passat. VW has always focused more on the Polo and Vento .

I don't blame VW for this as the Polo and Vento are their bread and butter.

Polo : 5-9L OTR
Vento : 8-12L OTR
Passat : 25L OTR (Roughly)

Both the Polo and Vento coupled you can't buy a Passat. The middle class group that are the mainstream users of cars will look more towards the Polo and Vento rather than a Passat. Even if VW puts 60% of its marketing strength on the Passat it will not sell.

The Passat is for the niche group of buyers that the company is NOT concentrating in India especially.

Anurag.

[avisidhu]

Originally Posted by satyaanveshi

It isn't merely the luxury marques (Audi/BMW/Merc) that are hollowing out the D2 segment, it's also the SUVs. In fact, even the luxury marques face significant competition from SUVs.

Quite a few people I know who would be natural customers for D2 segmenters and/or the luxury marques have preferred the Fortuner, the XUV500 or even the Innova. Lets face it, our city roads are not really suited for large vehicles. And for long-distance drives, especially if they involve some driving off the main highways, the UVs win because of space, brawn and high GC. So quite a few people who would be natural customers for D2 and above cars actually prefer smaller (read C segment) cars or urban SUVs for the city and regular SUVs/Innova for the highways.

Actually, it's not even about traffic or potholes in many cases. As for being large, the Fortuner is similarly sized. The craze for Fortuner (even sometimes the Innova) is also a case of herd mentality which has in turn hurt the D segment. Ideally, the D segment should have seen a boom thanks to our economic growth in the last two decades.

To give you an example, here in Chandigarh you won't find a single pothole. And yet everyone with a 20L budget goes for the Fortuner eyes closed(either new or used), since every well to do person he knows has done so. The resale value just acts as icing on the cake.

Heck, you can easily sight a few chauffer driven ones! Who in their right mind would buy a Fortuner to be driven inside the city all the time, and then sit in the back given that ride quality isn't exactly its USP.

[microaubin]

Originally Posted by a4anurag

If you buy the Passat tomorrow, will you keep it for the next 10 years?


Both the Polo and Vento coupled you can't buy a Passat. The middle class group that are the mainstream users of cars will look more towards the Polo and Vento rather than a Passat. Even if VW puts 60% of its marketing strength on the Passat it will not sell.

The Passat is for the niche group of buyers that the company is NOT concentrating in India especially.

Anurag.

Will I keep it for 10 years? Depends on many factors. But I didn't buy a Passat, so there's no question of keeping it.

I sold my 2004 Corolla last week after using it for almost 9 years since it had low resale value,was trouble free and still looked regal. I am selling my 3 year old Innova next week since its got amazing resale value. Not going into all the factors.

Did I consider the Passat? Yes. But my enquiry wasn't met with much enthusiasm. So I booked the A4 And which I intend to keep atleast for the next seven years or more if all goes well, touchwood, until I can upgrade.

Last year they had a zero percent EMI scheme which generated quite a few buyers. The Hyundai, Ford, Renault, Toyota ads sometimes showcase all their cars. VW could have done something like that or atleast advertised the Passat at regular intervals to generate some interest and leads and convert them to customers. Much depend on the showroom and sales staff attitude.

The Jetta is also not doing stellar volumes and is also overpriced. Even more so with the new Octavia having more features. So will they pull the plug on the Jetta too and go the Civic way or will they start marketing it more?

[GTO]

VW drops the following email:

We at Volkswagen continue to sell the current generation of the Passat through our dealer network. As with all our products, serviceability and availability of spares will never be an issue. The requirements of every Passat customer will be catered to with meticulous attention. Globally the next generation of the Passat is being readied and we shall introduce it in the Indian market at the appropriate time.

[drmohitg]

Originally Posted by GTO

VW drops the following email:

So that means they are not phasing it out? Or is it just a sugar candy way of saying that service part will not be affected for the current generation cars even though they are discontinuing the model.

[MaxTorque]

Overdrive reports that the news is not true. VW India rejects this news.
http://m.overdrive.in/news/volkswage...nued-in-india/

[rjalihal]

For a moment there I thought every car enthusiast would be cheering for one thing - used Passats will change hands for a lesser price due to its discontinuation. But since VW have said they don't plan to, guess the dream of buying myself a used full blown performance no-nonsense saloon is a distant dream!

Cheers!
Rohan

[Thilak29]

Please stand corrected.
VW has No plan to discontinue Passat sale in India.

[volkman10]

No plan to discontinue Passat sale in India: Volkswagen.

Volkswagen, continue to sell the current generation of the Passat through our dealer network," The statement comes following reports in a section of the media that the German luxury carmaker had stopped selling Passat in the Indian market on account of low sale.

The next generation of the Passat is being readied and Volkswagen will introduce it in the Indian market too at appropriate time.

Source:Economic Times

[a4anurag]

Originally Posted by GTO

VW drops the following email:

Originally Posted by drmohitg

So that means they are not phasing it out? Or is it just a sugar candy way of saying that service part will not be affected for the current generation cars even though they are discontinuing the model.

Thru could have stopped producing the Passat and there is a certain amount of inventory. If such a news speeds then even those niche customs will shy away towards Superb or Camry.

So till stocks are avaliable they will rub this news aside. The monthly sakes retort will speak for itself. Let's wait.

Anurag.

[harishpr]

Originally Posted by rjalihal

For a moment there I thought every car enthusiast would be cheering for one thing - used Passats will change hands for a lesser price due to its discontinuation. But since VW have said they don't plan to, guess the dream of buying myself a used full blown performance no-nonsense saloon is a distant dream!

Cheers!
Rohan

Passat doesn't command good resale value. Don't go through dealer. If you really want to own one, and ready to invest time, look for the classifieds online. You can buy the 2011 model for almost half the price.

[fx45]

Strange email that. As far as I know, they never produced a single 2013 model year Passat. All they sold this year were 2012 builds. I feel this is just to re-assure owners that there wont be a parts issue.

VW must give the Passat a facelift and re-launch it at a entry-price if possible. It's got a diesel engine.

[searchingheaven]

Just in: Link to news Article. Thank god that thay haven't discontinued it.

German carmaker Volkswagen said on Thursday that it has no plans to discontinue the sale of its current generation super luxury sedan Passat in India.

The company is working on a next generation model of Passat, which will be rolled out in the Indian market at a suitable time, it said.

"We, at Volkswagen, continue to sell the current generation of the Passat through our dealer network," Volkswagen India said in a statement in Mumbai.

The statement comes in the wake of media reports that the German luxury carmaker had stopped selling Passat in the Indian market on account of low sale.

Volkswagen has said the next generation Passat is being readied and it will be introduced in the Indian market at appropriate time.

"As with all our products, serviceability and availability of spares will never be an issue."

The auto group, which is present in India for the last 12 years, is represented in the domestic market by five brands - Audi, Lamborghini, Porsche, Skoda and Volkswagen.