German carmaker Volkswagen shows the new VW Golf car during its press presentation near Reykjavik in Iceland in mid September.
Photograph by: Handout photo, Reuters
Launching its most important model into a falling car market, Volkswagen is betting the look and feel of its Golf VI can win over discriminating hatchback buyers, in the absence of revolutionary advances under the hood.
Learning from the mistakes that beset the last Golf’s rollout late in 2003, VW expects easier assembly, improved economies of scale and a smooth production ramp-up will help it earn an initial 5 percent operating margin after the Golf V took over a year to make a profit.
Described by Automotive Magazine as "the barometer of European markets," the Golf VI’s launch on Oct. 10 could also serve as a leading indicator for demand: rival carmakers are set to roll out their latest hatchbacks over the next 12 months.
With forecasters at J.D. Power already predicting car sales in Western Europe will fall in 2009 to their lowest level in more than a decade — and Volkswagen itself more cautious for next year — the challenge remains daunting.
At the new compact’s media debut in Iceland recently, Volkswagen called the car "the quietest Golf of all time" thanks to extensive acoustic improvements. It pointed to a puristic design and higher-quality materials, which give a greater feeling of comfort and luxury than in the current model.
"In the recent past, the design was overstyled and overdecorated," said group design boss Walter de Silva, who took over from Murat Gunak about 18 months ago and junked his predecessor’s plans in favour of a completely different look.
"It had little to do with the VW brand’s simplicity and character and the approach was wrong for Volkswagen," he said.
In the industry’s most competitive segment, the Golf will contend with about 130 direct European rivals, such as this year’s upcoming Renault Megane or the Opel Astra, due in 2009.
An emphasis on horizontal lines returns the Golf’s design to its roots and baroque ornamentation gives way to clear, crisp elegance that will be the face of the brand to come.
"This sets a higher benchmark for the entire Golf class," said Martin Winterkorn, chief executive at VW.
The Golf saved Volkswagen from collapse when it premiered in 1974 and over 26 million have been delivered to customers since. The world’s third-largest carmaker needs a home-run then if it is to reach a group sales target of 8 million vehicles by 2011.
Anything short of unmitigated success could knock VW’s stock price, hitherto inflated in anticipation of rival Porsche’s accumulation of shares to gain control by the end of this year — a milestone Porsche said on Tuesday it had crossed.
According to Reuters data, 24 of 32 analysts polled have a bearish recommendation on the stock, which is up about 58 percent so far this year against a backdrop of sliding equity markets.
ICELAND A NATURAL CHOICE
Since the compact class attracts car buyers from nearly all walks of life, manufacturers must be extremely careful and change only what is necessary to give new models a fresh look.
The Golf VI will retail in Germany starting at 16,500 euros for the Trendline version including VAT, roughly 200 euros more than the corresponding Golf V. A new Golf is due for North America sometime next year.
The latest model remains unmistakably a Golf, and while Volkswagen dramatically altered the underpinnings of the fifth-generation — something more likely to be noticed by a mechanic than a consumer — it has focused this time around on improving the things one can see, hear, touch and feel.
Designers and engineers sought to enrich its ergonomics by dampening sounds and vibrations in the car’s interior wherever possible, to reduce driver fatigue and increase road safety.
Modifications were made to better isolate engine noise from the cabin. New door sealings, tyres that roll quieter and three layers of sound-damping film to the windshield were added.
Unlike the Golf V, where VW heavily emphasised the car’s improved handling thanks to a new multi-link rear suspension, it has steered clear of major changes to the Golf’s chassis.
That is part of the company’s gradual phase-out of using platforms on which to build cars, which limits scope for radically different dimensions and hence scale effects.
Ulrich Winzen, chief analyst in Germany for automotive industry researcher R.L. Polk, believes the new hatchback could jolt reluctant buyers out of their current lethargy.
"This time Volkswagen got it exactly right," he said. "They improved those elements that are immediately noticeable. Customers don’t have to read the technical specs or pop the hood and look at the engine now just to know it’s a new Golf."
Presenting the new model in Iceland, with its unpolluted air and abundance of geothermal energy, was part of Volkswagen’s strategy to refine the brand focus.
"It was a natural choice for a clean and simple product. We did not feel it was appropriate to show the Golf in a city like London or Madrid," said de Silva.
Gone are the belligerent headlights and gaudy trapezoidal chrome grill that became the hallmark of aggressively styled vehicles such as the Tiguan or Eos under former design boss Gunak and ex-VW brand chief Wolfgang Bernhard.
By bundling its purchasing power, Volkswagen was able to boost cabin comfort at no added expense through the substitution of higher-quality materials not found in the Golf V, which went over budget late in the development phase.
Building the new Golf on its predecessor’s platform also allows for considerable cost savings, meaning VW can redirect investments over the next four years towards developing its new modular tool kits that the later Golf VII will share.
This so-called "MQB" due in 2012 offers better flexibility in design and greater synergies between vehicles positioned across different segments. This could solve a common complaint that the Golf’s rear seats still do not fold flush.
"A flat loading bay is on my wish-list for the next Golf," VW brand design chief Klaus Bischoff promised future buyers.
Drive an eye-catching Accord Coupe, and you’ll just have to get used to the extra attention.
The new BMW concept car is a shape-shifter? Hrmmm, this bears looking into. The new BMW GINA Light Visionary Model car is created using a flexible fabric that is rather stretched over a manipuable metal frame. So you can basically change the actual shape of your car based on what features you activate. More of like a classy Thing.
