Volkswagen’s Phaeton may return to the U.S. market, as the company’s CEO says it needs to have a halo car in the United States. According to a report from Bloomberg, an all-new Phaeton may premiere as a concept in January at the 2014 Detroit Motor Show, marking the return of the flagship sedan seven years after it was discontinued in the U.S. due to weak sales.
As before, the Phaeton would play the role of a halo car and would complement the launch of new VW SUVs in the U.S. “A brand as large as Volkswagen needs a halo project in the upscale segment,” VW CEO Martin Winterkorn told Bloomberg earlier this month, confirming that the Phaeton will return to U.S. dealerships. “We’ve seen what happens to brands that don’t have that kind of project,” he added.
Launched in 2002, the Phaeton has had two facelifts (2007 and 2010). The car is aging and sales reflect that, with last year’s global sales being half the volume targeted by VW. The return to the U.S. is part of a plan to spend $5 billion over the next three years to launch new models and increase sales in the country, as deliveries have started to slow after a two-year boom following the 2011 launch of the Passat and Jetta sedans.
At the Detroit auto show, VW may preview a new version of the Phaeton to test the response for an eventual launch. According to three people familiar with the matter, the car would share underpinnings with the Audi A8 sedan and would have a hybrid version.
The automaker surely needs a better strategy this time, as the first-generation Phaeton failed because it was too expensive for a Volkswagen.
By Dan Mihalascu
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