[RavenAvi]

Apparently the pricing played a big factor here, with entry-level cars from the big trio - BMW, Mercedes and Audi - being within reach of those who could afford to go for the VW Passat.

Moreover, sales had gone down to 0 units for the past two months. The Passat aggregated 235 units for the past six months, despite having a diesel powerplant. Comparatively, the Honda Accord, with a petrol-only lineup, accumulated 205 units within the same 6 months!

The Passat's nearest competitor, the Skoda Superb, aggregated 507 units for the same time period.

The all-new 2014 Passat will be launched worldwide by mid-2014, so it will be interesting to see if Volkswagen brings it to the Indian market by 2015.

Team BHP's official review of the Passat: http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/offici...ve-review.html




SOURCE:- http://www.motoroids.com/news/now-vo...ntinued-india/

[Ponkermania]

This is strange. My family tried to buy a Passat earlier this year, we were told that it was out of stock, and that there were no fresh dispatches from the VW plant.

We were really keen on the Highline, the toys were most tempting. I suppose it's a good thing that it didn't work out, given what the discontinuation would do to the resale value.

[rohan.xj]

Heard similar news for Honda Accord. After axing Civic from the Indian markets, they have now discontinued the production of Accord also! Same reasons (lower priced German rivals!) were cited for Accord as well!

Guess, this news will be well received in the Skoda and Hyundai camps!

[fine69]

While it is a good car Superb definitely is better and when one can get a Bimmer/Merc/Audi for a little more money then cars in this segment never stood a chance (we all know that for 90% of Indians its all about the image and exclusivity).

In fact what is surprising to me is how Superb continues to sell the kind of units that it does. For me a chauffeur driven Superb is anyday better than the lowest variants of Audi/Merc/BMW but that doesn't hold true for all the buyers out there.

[Sahil]

The accord was expected to be discontinued but the Passat is quite surprising. Clearly the strategy is to let the next facelift Superb sweep the market with a monolopy thereby allow Skoda to raise the price too.

VW should launch the Passat CC at this point, IMO. That model will not conflict as much with the Superb and could command a premium due to it's styling.

[issigonis]

>>>

Two interesting points emerge :

1. From the supply side :

In order to penetrate the Chinese (and subsequently other emerging countries) where the craving for premium brands amongst the nouveau-riche and the high earning members of the (upper) middle class, the three teutons are launching products one segment below their hitherto entry level products, at a lower price point viz. A & B Class, the 2 Series & possibly the A3, apart from the forthcoming small Jag. This is to quickly establish a bridgehead to capture these growth markets.

2. From the demand side :

Indians and possibly their Chinese brethren are focussed more on comfort & status symbols rather than outright performance. Flaunting a brand is a sure way to proclaim one's arrival; crude but there it is.

Also, the sticker price is an important factor in a buying decision, never mind the segment in which a product plays. A Passat for example, retailing around INR 27l in India, will not be attractive to an archetypal Indian buyer, who will find greater 'value' in a similarly priced, maybe smaller premium teuton, such as a 2 Series or a B Class. Never mind that the Passat plays in a different segment (executive sedan), rather than a small 'personal' car/small executive car.

Engineering & production values count for little, in such buying decisions.
That's why the Passat has had an uphill climb here.

Rationally speaking I would compare the Passat with, possibly a 5 or an E from a segment perspective, if you keep the brand attributes to one side.

For China, India and other similar economies, where the general car buying populace has been starved of high quality and hence expensive products, it will be awhile before a brand focussed decision evolves into a multi-attribute decision with attention toward engineering design etc.

Regards

[TRANSAM]

This is so sudden, no markets rumour's. nothing. how do they just dis-continue the car? one can understand, dismal numbers over a period of time, they could have attempted to offer some juicy discounts, to push sales etc?

Await some more information on this thread, as this is such a great car, albeit overpriced.

[9thsphinx]

I see a a perfect opportunity for deal diggers. The Passat had all the creature comforts required of a luxury sedan AND had a diesel heart. Only now it will also be heavily discounted.

Go get yours before the whatever-remaining pieces with your dealer get sold off!

[IshaanIan]

Originally Posted by TRANSAM

This is so sudden, no markets rumour's. nothing. how do they just dis-continue the car? one can understand, dismal numbers over a period of time, they could have attempted to offer some juicy discounts, to push sales etc?

Await some more information on this thread, as this is such a great car, albeit overpriced.

Had been rumored to be discontinued for quite a while.

[drmohitg]

I think VW and soon even Skoda might find itself in this soup. IMHO there D segment offering i.e. the Jetta is priced too high for what it offers. And this translates into an even higher pricing for the Passat to maintain a gap between the two. But the problem is that then the Passat goes almost into the territory of the bigger Germans but doesn't share the same aspirational value as them. And hence the low sales. But yes by just suddenly discontinuing it, they are not inspiring much confidence amongst buyers. They just literally killed the residual value of all Passats out there.

[avisidhu]

Discontinuation of Passat and Accord is also indicative of the shrinking of D segment, which is quite a surprise.

And it's not just the big three that have bitten into the pie, I think one vehicle has a big role to play here as well: the Fortuner.

[nik_kapur]

Well it makes sense for VW to not sell a Dud for any longer but i believe they could have tried a little longer with this car. A better price would have helped. I don't think i have seen a Passat on the roads in the last 6 months. Who has bought them? The accord had to be discontinued as it was the previous generation on sale and eventually the CKD kits would have run out at Honda India. No more CKD kits could be imported as the car isn't made anymore.

Originally Posted by RavenAvi

Apparently the pricing played a big factor here, with entry-level cars from the big trio - BMW, Mercedes and Audi - being within reach of those who could afford to go for the VW Passat.

Also the AUDI A3 Sedan will soon be launched at Price levels similar to the Passat. This would have further dented any possibility of the Passat selling.

[TMRT]

Passat starting with the name hasn't been very appealing. I would any time prefer Jetta to a passat. Passat was considered to be an upgrade to Jetta in American roads, although too much of a price rise between these two models for a larger size. Upgrade on Indian roads should be something close to Dzire to SX4 RIP PASSAT.

[jkdas]

Originally Posted by 9thsphinx

I see a a perfect opportunity for deal diggers. The Passat had all the creature comforts required of a luxury sedan AND had a diesel heart. Only now it will also be heavily discounted.

Go get yours before the whatever-remaining pieces with your dealer get sold off!

There were deals going around for the last two months. A friend bought the base version at 3lac discount.

[AyAn!]

Apart from the brawny Touareg, none of the premium offerings from VW could cash in on the burgeoning Indian luxury segment. Not that the Touareg set the charts on fire, but at-least it has the "big SUV" desirability quotient, which works pretty well in the affluent parts of the country. Although the Passat saw healthy sales for a bit, the aggressive Teutonic trio ultimately stopped it in its tracks. I think it's time to move downmarket - the low cost UP! and all it's variants should do the trick here.