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The VW "CrossBlue" concept vehicle (for now)
Hamster, Pot Pie, Sandal, Toddler, Sunbeam, Teapot, Pillow, and Mist. They can add Blue to one of those. My vote is for Hamster. We all know the diesel is expensive to make, reportedly something approaching $7,000 for the engine. The BlueHampster’s hybrid diesel is not going to be cheap, but the car needs to be. Remember the Phaeton. Great car. Amazing car, in fact. Everyone said, who’s going to buy a luxury VW? They were right, because the answer was, “No one.” You’re Volkswagen. Your name means People’s Car. You make cheap, wonderful, fun transportation. You go your own way. You put the engines in the back, you lift the inside wheel in corners and you make people happy. My mother just bought a new six-speed Mazda CX-5. No hybrid, no diesel, cost next to nothing, gets 35 mpg and for the first time in years she gets out of her car with a smile on her face every time. The CrossBlue may make people satisfied, but it won’t make people fall in love.
Lastly, and this is going to be hard for you to swallow, VW, throw the current design away. It’s nice enough and has the new family grille, but—and this is probably what Mr. Horn’s dealers wanted—it is completely anonymous. There’s nothing there. Is it a Highlander? A CR-V? Sorrento? Who knows. The BlueHamster should be instantly recognizable from any angle, not just from studying the grille. This is the 65th anniversary of the VW Beetle in America, by some measures the best-selling car in history. It was in production for 65 years, more than half the total time that cars have been sold to the public, period. That is Volkswagen, the perfect car for two generations of people throughout the world, not a niche vehicle to capture sales and fill in a gap in the lineup. Have the courage to build a car for people to love, not for dealers to sell. Build a Volkswagen.
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