Good. Then they can deal with all of the problems GM and Toyota have had to deal with the past 5 years. If I was an automaker I wouldn’t flaunt that news. It would scare me!

If this does happen toy-yo-DAA got the crown for 1 year WOW. Way to keep that ball rolling.
I mean not bad, GM only had the crown for 76 or 77 years.

VAG FOR LIFE

Caddy, don’t forget that GM’s had the advantage of having the North American market on their side. The other companies wanted to develop their home markets first. Only in the last 20 years have the foreign companies set their sites on the NA market.

They should be watching the problems GM is having for getting too big and taking notes.

I mean, it’s like if you’re a king and your army is taking over the land in every direction, sure you’ll get rich at first, but you’ll be spread so thin. The bigger you get the more weak spots show up.

This expansion sounds pretty crazy, they’ll be like the Google of cars.

Jon Luc- well said. Most of those years when GM “had the crown”, there were very few imports to choose from in America.

I found those plans and prediction bizarre. I would expect some BS of that level from Lutz the King of Putzes, NMOGM and slew of other “statesman”. VW as public company should aim for enrichment of its owners, shareholders. Largest volume producer is not necessarily the most profitable, i.e performing well for shareholders.

if you remove the North America from the equation this pretty much means VAG trounces Toyota in the rest of the world. Good for them I guess but until they address quality and repair cost issues there is not one Vw I would own (even if I like them).

mayer_ray_nagin has a good point. Costs are pretty steep, that’s why if you buy one, you know you can only keep it until the warrenty is up – and that’s it.

LOL The Japanese have better resale value. LOL My moms Honda is totally awesome. LOL I watch my sister in the shower. LOL

GO VW!! I’M 100% FOR YOU GUYS!!! SCREW TOYOTA!!!

shaver – Japanese does NOT have better resale value. Up until this current generation of VW’s (MKV/B6) that may have been true. The Jetta and Golf are very high for resale.
I think that Toyota makes aweful cars. They make cars for people who don’t like cars. Not what I am looking for for sure.

VW all the way… The numbers should shut the door on an argument for Toyota. There is a reason they sell more cars. That reason is that they actually make cars people want to buy.

I like how you guys keep on going back to VW’s reliability as if we are living in 1995 or something! Their quality IS superb and has one of the BEST fit and finishes inside than any other car company in the same category. Their reliability is way up their along with the rest. If you don’t believe me, look up consumer reports. But, I’m willing to bet you won’t because you just hate VW, and don’t really care about the truth as long as you keep on saying “their reliability sucks”!

Such a shame. One good can of ‘Bug’ spray and we could have controlled the infestation right from the get go.

it’s funny , in Europe VWs are considered cheap to maintain and Japanese cars are bitches once they are out of warranty.

That would be awesome in a way I cannot explain. Most people probably think I’m a GM fanboy because I’m usually on here defending them, but I’ve been a VW guy since my teens. I’ve always loved the cars, and vow to be a dubber again.

I’d buy a GX3… if they made it.

VW and Audi’s reliability bites. Fit and finish have NOTHING to do with reliability. Find me an Audi owner who hasn’t needed $1600+ in new wheel bearings within 10K miles after going out of warranty.

savedsol,
you talk as if you actually know something! hahahahahah you make me laugh!! Audi buys bearings from the same company that Bugatti(only the actual bearing balls), bmw, mercedes, mini, volvo(outer covering only), and many others including airplanes!!! you are full of it, hater!!!

Good for Vw but who cares realy…

BTW, I don’t see the significance of GM having the NA market on their side. How is that any different from Japan having the Japanese market to themselves, which they still enjoy? How many imports were there to choose from there? Well, none, really. Saying the difference was the imports had their own markets to develop first is null, since NA is GM’s home market. They essentially did the same thing. The real markets that made their strategies different were Europe (Vauxhaul, Opel) and Australia (Holden), and the European markets have never been monopolised by those companies.

Not a hater, just don’t know anyone who would buy one again – including myself, a past Audi owner. If you did see, I would by a GX3. In fact I even brought a check to the Chicago Auto Show that year.

Everyone knows the Germans make the best stuff.
They are better then Toyota, because of all those rear drive models.
VW is better then domestics because they dont ever badge engineer with Audi. Viva la Mexico!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

savedsol, this is one previous owner of a VW (a Brazilian one of all things) who not only would, but will own another VW.

We too will have another VW when the aura lease is up. Unless the deal to turn in our aura for an outlook is agreeable for the dealer.

I had 3 VW in my life.
2 in Brazil (Bug (Fusca) and Fox wagon(Parati)) and one in the USA. All of them were great. The one in the USA (1994 Fox) it was a car that for 4 years, I only changed oil and put gas. No a single issue ever. Best car I ever had in that respect.

Then I bought a Volvo and bam!!! What a piece of sh•t when it comes to repair costs and maintenance.

I am seriously considering the Jetta Sportswaggen TDI or the new Audi Q5 as my next car. VW rocks in my experience with them. Congrats!

“Jon Luc- well said. Most of those years when GM “had the crown”, there were very few imports to choose from in America.”

Exactly. Toyota has only been here for 50 years. I’m glad you cleared all of this up. Honda and Nissan have been here for about 40 years. Gm has been facing imports for decades and they still stayed #1 in the US and the world for 77 years. Stop with the excuses.

“I like how you guys keep on going back to VW’s reliability as if we are living in 1995 or something!”

This is all Japanese car fanboys do. Haven’t you noticed? Whenever the news is negative for Toyota we hear about “resale value”. What does that have to do with Toyota being #1 for a short year? Nothing. At the end of 2008 Toyota fans were rejoicing that Toyota had passed GM on their way to losing $5B last year. Now we find out they may get passed after one year because they are weak in every major market outside of the US and Japan. In Europe people are not fascinated by Japanese cars and GM and Ford outperform Toyota. Over there they are not obsessed with the concept of not visiting a dealer for ANY repairs for 10 years straght like Americans are. They actually care more about styling, performance, features and interior materials- all things Toyota doesn’t do all that well.

Lang lebe Deutschland! haha not to sound nationalistic or anythng but seriously thas cool

Good because Toyota usually only tried to be better than GM when eying that #1 spot.

Now they’ll have to work harder. Let’s just pray the $$$ don’t go up as well. They’ll have to give us something better. Hopefully.

-eat your cereal

how! Volkswagens are **** for the most part.. sure the VW Group has nice brands, but most are niche and limited production…

I LOVE VW. Glad to hear this, I think they’re by far the most competent car company in the world. They seem to actually have their **** together (however VWoA is another story, they are from the GM school of learning an cant seem to ever offer anything irresistible)

sj79- When Toyota, Datsun, and Honda entered the American market, they didn’t magically fly into serious competition, it took some time for them to develop buyers, get their volumes in order, etc.

They really haven’t been in the game as long as you’d like to think they have, they may have been HERE, but they were not a factor for a little while.

idor….

VW is at the bottom of the barrel for long term reliability. UP front they look nice but they fall apart.

http://www.jdpower.com/corporate/news/releases/pressrelease.aspx?ID=2009043

hold on people

after these economical recover within 2 years @ max

every thing ‘ll came back to its self

and toyota ‘ll sell 10 mil and GM sold again 9 Mil + which is a far maragin than VAG

just a matter of time

VW must have one heck of a marketing program Worldwide to get new people to buy their cars. They always seem to be near the bottom of the list for number of repeat buyers.

VW Group should really be careful… or they may repeat GM’s mistakes. VW, Audi, Porsche, and Lambo? These guys are getting a little big for their britches. I realise that Lambos don’t really count because they are so limited production. But the lots at the VW, Audi, and Porsche dealers right down the road are all packed full of vehicles that haven’t moved in months. Let’s not dilute the brand too much here folks… and for heaven’s sake don’t ever EVER buy another rebadge from Chrysler.

carstuff,
do some research on who funds and donates money to Jdpower! The companies that support them the most are ironically the ones who always score highest on their lists! Coincidence?? I think not!! Almost all germans brands are against jdpower because they offer very biased info…kind of like how Jeremy Clarkson has biased views of all american cars! There is no german brand that supports them as much as gm! How long will it take for you people to learn that jd gets paid off to say/do what ever they want to be heard?? You want the best facts/knowlede/reviews without biased info from a reputible company??? Here it is…….. CONSUMER REPORTS!!! It’s the most trusted review guide for all cars, even in europe!

idrinorbarsaku:
Not to knock what you just said, but for ANYONE that wants to get educated on cars should not get your info out of a book/magazine that’s written by people you don’t even know. They are ALL getting paid to write something. If you want to know then go to the dealerships yourself and find out for yourself. As for myself when I got my CTS-V I went to BMW and BENZ before I bought it to see what else was out there. I did’nt read some article then only go to one dealership and drive only one car. I will never understand why people buy things based on what other people have to say about it. I guess they don’t have a mind of there own or it’s just easier if someone else does the thinking for you. I’ll take someone’s opinion when they start picking up my car payments.

gugy, how did you get a Fox in the US in 1994? They only imported them up to 1993.

VW has attractive cars that are good enough.
Part B: GM
Toyota — Nah.