"Volkswagen vindicated by its new Rabbit"

Volkswagen vindicated by its new Rabbit
When practically everybody in the car business abandoned hatchbacks as
if they were infected with some sort of bird flu, Volkswagen stubbornly
stuck to the design with its Golf.
at http://www.washtimes.com/autoweekend...1354-3828r.htm

"Mike" > wrote in message
ups.com...
> Volkswagen vindicated by its new Rabbit
> When practically everybody in the car business abandoned hatchbacks as
> if they were infected with some sort of bird flu, Volkswagen stubbornly
> stuck to the design with its Golf.
> at http://www.washtimes.com/autoweekend...1354-3828r.htm

Too bad the author didn't do his homework:

"It was a puzzle to anyone who remembered the shoddy quality of the Rabbit
of the 1970s, when it was built in the United States. The factory eventually
closed and production returned to Germany."

Not true. The vast majority of 1970s Rabbits did come from Germany until
the 1979 model year when non-convertible models for the US and Canada were
made in the US for 1979-1984. The factory stayed in production through
about 1989 producing the Mk2 Golf starting in late 1984 and when it closed
the production was replaced by Puebla production, not German production.

That's because the plant wasn't here until, 79. The bottom line is the US
Rabbit plant saved VW. Those cars saved VW. They sold every one they made.
And a lot of them did rot on out salted roads. The A1 and A2 were the best
cars VWs made up to now. And that's still up in the air until these new ones
get a few years on them to see if VW learned their lesson yet. Any idiot
knows you can't make a killing selling cars in the US made overseas. You
cant respond to problems and you cant make them for people different sizes
and who drive different on different kinds of roads. You have to make a
good car, for the people you are selling it to, in their country. If you
aint doing that , you aren't going to do anything but survive at best.
"Matt B." > wrote in message
...
> "Mike" > wrote in message
> ups.com...
>> Volkswagen vindicated by its new Rabbit
>> When practically everybody in the car business abandoned hatchbacks as
>> if they were infected with some sort of bird flu, Volkswagen stubbornly
>> stuck to the design with its Golf.
>> at http://www.washtimes.com/autoweekend...1354-3828r.htm
>
> Too bad the author didn't do his homework:
>
> "It was a puzzle to anyone who remembered the shoddy quality of the Rabbit
> of the 1970s, when it was built in the United States. The factory
> eventually closed and production returned to Germany."
>
> Not true. The vast majority of 1970s Rabbits did come from Germany until
> the 1979 model year when non-convertible models for the US and Canada were
> made in the US for 1979-1984. The factory stayed in production through
> about 1989 producing the Mk2 Golf starting in late 1984 and when it closed
> the production was replaced by Puebla production, not German production.
>

Mike wrote:
> Volkswagen vindicated by its new Rabbit
> When practically everybody in the car business abandoned hatchbacks as
> if they were infected with some sort of bird flu, Volkswagen stubbornly
> stuck to the design with its Golf.
> at http://www.washtimes.com/autoweekend...1354-3828r.htm

Everyone else in the car business is abandoning hatchbacks because
Americans want big gas guzzlers that can climb mountains, for all the
trips they take to the mall. Hatchbacks are still made and sold to the
rest of the world.

[another] Mike

wrote:
> Mike wrote:
>> Volkswagen vindicated by its new Rabbit
>> When practically everybody in the car business abandoned hatchbacks as
>> if they were infected with some sort of bird flu, Volkswagen stubbornly
>> stuck to the design with its Golf.
>> at http://www.washtimes.com/autoweekend...1354-3828r.htm
>
> Everyone else in the car business is abandoning hatchbacks because
> Americans want big gas guzzlers that can climb mountains, for all the
> trips they take to the mall. Hatchbacks are still made and sold to the
> rest of the world.

Way to paint with a broad brush, there. I guess that's why the Prius is
a hatchback, and Honda, Toyota, and Nissan have all released new
hatchback models in the US (Fit, Yaris, Versa) - 'cause those guys have
no idea at all what they're doing when it comes to selling cars, right?

--
Mike Smith

Mike Smith wrote:
> Way to paint with a broad brush, there. I guess that's why the Prius is
> a hatchback, and Honda, Toyota, and Nissan have all released new
> hatchback models in the US (Fit, Yaris, Versa) - 'cause those guys have
> no idea at all what they're doing when it comes to selling cars, right?

Honda's been selling hatchbacks since they started, so? What's the
number one class of vehicle in sales in the U.S.? Light truck/SUV.

I guess all those SUVs I see on the road, and that every car
manufacturer now has one (they don't all have hatchback models), and it
being the highest selling class of vehicle is because Americans love
hatchbacks.

To say that Americans are overweight is not to say that all of them
are. It is understood that it means "most" or "on average".

Americans don't like hatchbacks. They don't sell well.

Mike

hey do you know the size of the golf hatchback/trunk size. im looking
to buy one but not sure howbig the trunk is.

thanks,

Jordan

jordan88 wrote:
> hey do you know the size of the golf hatchback/trunk size. im looking
> to buy one but not sure howbig the trunk is.
>
> thanks,
>
> Jordan

You could probably get the specs with a little web searching. Or you
could go and measure one yourself. Check out
http://www.autotrader.com/research/compare/index.jsp

It may tell you the size of the hatch with the rear seats up. When you
fold them down, the hatch is much bigger, of course.

I like hatchback cars. I've had three Saab hatchbacks. My wife has had
several Honda Civic hatchbacks. The cargo area is much more useful than
trunks in sedans. I currently have a Passat station wagon which is
basically a long hatchback. I don't like SUV's because they're
unnecessarily big for me. For all that extra size, you don't get a heck
of a lot of extra interior space.

Tom Reingold
Noo Joizy

> Americans don't like hatchbacks. They don't sell well.
>
> Mike
>

Well, I like them, and I am an American. I definitely do NOT like SUVs or
4-wheel drive vehicles of any type. In going to the Mall or making a
roadtrip on paved roads, they just seem like overkill and a big waste of
resources.

Papa wrote:
> Well, I like them, and I am an American. I definitely do NOT like SUVs or
> 4-wheel drive vehicles of any type. In going to the Mall or making a
> roadtrip on paved roads, they just seem like overkill and a big waste of
> resources.

Yes, I like them too and I think they're a waste for the same reasons
you do. My point was not that ALL Americans don't like them, but that
the most don't. SUVs are a larger market. Sad, but true.

Mike