The Dire State Of Volkswagen...What Happened?

[@Frammdo]

As a German, it is hard to see so many German car manufacturers breaking apart. VW biggest problem was their over-reliance on China, while offering Western consumers not what they wanted. VW cars are nowadays overpriced unreliable cars

[@andrzejnadgirl2029]

I would also add - simple reliance on brand prestige and reputation without maintaining it. VW approach towarss buisness in last years looked like they wanted to close down and cash in, their buisness approach didn't had any long term perspective involved. It's really shame when it comes to Eurooean automotive state nowadays and that Chinese brands are serious threat to it's position. And it's not because Chinese started making so great cars all of the sudden...

[@wizaaeed]

Vw still better than throwing all your money you ever made just to run a 5.5 mercedes or bmw engine

[@dalecooper9942]

You got that one right: over priced and unreliable.

[@user-kc1tf7zm3b]

Frammdo, you are missing the point. Volkswagen have all but ignored the EV revolution. By 2030, petrol cars will be totally obsolete, and with it, nearly all of the legacy car market which VW depends on will no longer exist. Germany and VW only have themselves to blame for their dire predicament, as German society and industry chose not to stay relevant with modern times.

[@Florian_Kiel]

Betonung auf überteuert!

[@СтепанРазин-ж3м]

You know that something is very wrong with a company if it offers a subscription plan for heated front seats for $6.99 a month.

[@mortenh.o.703]

Now McDonalds do the same for a 18 Dollar-meal

[@OffGridInvestor]

And for $20 you can go buy a cigarette lighter heated front seat cover. I literally have one in my spare linen cupboard.

[@crazyfroggie6546]

100 bucks a year for having a warm bum during winter months.

[@adamesd3699]

Seriously? Dang! When did they start doing that kind of crazy? I’ve owned several VWs over the years. All of them were great and relatively simple. But something went wrong with VW. I test drove an ID.4 and hated it. Complicated uncomfortable mess of a vehicle.

[@stevemartin7464]

Did they do that? Wow, thats weird! Imagine trying to take cars into the subscription model. Perhaps next you will pay $20.99 a month for the engine? Plus of course you pay for the car.

[@womp6338]

removing all the buttons was an awful idea.

[@kamX-rz4uy]

Part of that cost cutting. Trying to save money with subpar tech.

[@womp6338]

@@kamX-rz4uy yeah and then trying to tell people that it’s an improvement

[@sandeepk4093]

Yes exactly. I avoid new VW group cars for this reason

[@shilpam99]

Oh you figured it out, what great insight.

[@JasonKing-m6m]

@@womp6338 Worst thing is, some idiots actually do think it's an improvement...

[@640A]

Car buyers don't give a sh*t about ''Diesel gate'' they want a reliable car with some useful tech at an affordable price!

[@josht8299]

Literally. Idk why people think the average consumer remembers or even cares about that. Give a car with nice tech, reliable at a great price and they will come and buy your product

[@PeterLindstrom-x4w]

I care. Why would I give my money to a company that cheated emission standards? Many consumers do care, and we shouldn't discount them. They're part of the set of forces which incentivize companies to behave. The same could be said of Boeing and the 737 Max. Yes, your chance of being killed on a Boeing plane is super low, much lower than being killed in a car crash. But consumers choosing to avoid the Max (and Kayak making it easier) puts pressure on management to change the company or resign. I'm about halfway through my life and haven't become jaded yet. Just hoping to make it the rest of the way some idealism still intact.

[@PhillKaggitz]

Exactly, I couldn’t care less about their whole diesel gate thing, I just want an affordable car that is not going to break down in two months

[@mikepalmer1971]

I want a care I can work on if it breaks down.

[@andrzejnadgirl2029]

It's not just dieselgate though. VW bribed automotive magazines in Germany so those lied about VW cars performance and reliability kn favor of VW. They have really bad press overall.

[@marufbepary100]

You can afford to lose money but you cannot afford to lose reputation

[@ayoCC]

More like, reputation is a currency you lose slowly and nothing happens, until the losses happen all at once.

[@umtatraining]

German engineering will never lose reputation - don't go by all the media hype about 'Dieselgate' - media has a habit of over-dramatising everything.

[@marufbepary100]

@@umtatraining There was time in up until the 80s where German cars were known for the reliability and quality. That level of quality and reliability does not exist any more. Mercedes took the biggest hit out of the Germans. I personally own a Lexus IS and my friend used to own a BMW 3 series and that car started developing random issues and annoyances even after being serviced well. Because of that, for long road-trips we use the Lexus, sure it doesn't feel as fun and dynamic to drive but at least we can count on it to get us to places. Also the leather is better on the Lexus. He now has an Audi A4 which he got recently. Germans car used to have the reputation for luxury, reliability and quality. Now it's just luxury.

[@davidbrayshaw3529]

@@umtatraining It's too late for that, and there was no "media hype" about dieselgate. It was corporate criminal fraud of the highest level. Not only did the conspiracy cause 11,000,000 of VW's products to produce 40 times more NOx emissions than permissible, it gave them a massive and very profitable edge in the market. And let's just think about those numbers for a moment. 11,000,000 x 40. That equals 440,000,000. That's about one third of the world's vehicles. Yes, VW was contributing 1/3 of the world's vehicular NOx emissions with just 11,000,000 cars. Staggering, isn't it. And it was all by conspiracy within the company to do so. Criminal conspiracy. No media hype, here, just facts. And as far as German engineering never losing its reputation, the rot has set in. From disgruntled owners to JD Power surveys, time and time again... problems with German cars. Time and time again... far fewer problems with Japanese cars. My family always had German cars when I was a kid. I learned to drive in a '63 Beetle. My Father owned two Audi's when I was a kid, Mum owned a Passat and a BMW. I've personally owned 5 VW's and 3 Mercedes. The final straw was that ridiculous piece of rubbish W203. I won't bore you with the dramas that several of my friends have had with VW's and Audis in the last 15 years. Rubbish cars, with rubbish reliability, exorbitant prices, terrible aftersales service that depreciate like a stone. I'm glad that I got to sample German engineering when it had a good reputation. I'm also glad that I've got two Japanese cars in the driveway. And as far as VW is concerned... Never again. They're corporate criminals.

[@chevy4x466]

@@umtatrainingthe Obama administration screwed vw in favor of the Asian and American makers that did the same bogus thing. It was criminal what Obama and his buddies did to vw. Also many Americans lost jobs cuz of it. Vw had a huge center in auburn hills Michigan. The left wing epa has killed the American auto industry too. Unlike the broad sword they took to vw, it has been death by one thousand cuts for the Americans. The big 3 could not offer American consumers what they wanted cuz they had to pad their lines with high mph models that didn’t sell

[@Juventinos]

that Volkswagen vs Tesla at the beginning tell you one thing.. Tesla is still massively overvalued

[@LogicallyAnswered]

😂

[@the0ne809]

elmo created a cult. so far it has worked well.

[@loremipsum384]

@@the0ne809 elmo 😂😂😂😂

[@Jordan-Ramses]

Tesla will be bankrupt in 5 or 10 years. Electric vehicles were a mistake. Toyota is winning.

[@ikarus605]

They are valued based on there potential and with that in mind the stock price is justified. They are doing great in energy storage, production, margin and to this day there is no competitor even close to the development state of FSD. If, and remember I say if, they mange to make the first certified Level 4 Autopilot on the market and find a way to licence/sell it to other manufacturers the company is undervalued. I know the next sentence sounds a lot like a fanboy speaking, but it is true. Tesla is more than just a car manufacturer. What brings me to Volkswagen, they are basically only a car manufacturer, focusing heavily on ICE. They have poor vertical integration, almost no inhouse Software (I know they are working on that but just last year they moved the goal of havin a standardized software across all brands from 2025 to 2030), outdated production methods and no manufacturing for batteries. Hate or love both Volkswagen and Tesla, but one company is going into the future, while the other is still living in the past, trying to stay relevant in the future. They are to big to fail and germany wont let them down, but I expect them to make heavy cuts. I wouldnt be surprised if there is no Seat/Skoda anymore 10 years from now and even Audi will most likely be cut down to some luxury vehicles.

[@berndkemmereit8252]

VW has issues going much deeper. The Name Volkswagen are two words. Volks (the people) Wagen (car), literly translated it means the peoples car. That's how they stared after War with the Beetle, then the Golf...etc. All these cars where cars people could afford, as a middle class family your first point of contact for a new car was VW. Now VW thinks they are some kind of hip brand, the Golf which was always the car for the people, is extremely expensive. The family car (Passat) is a joke for that price. They have forgotten their roots, and now people don't see them anymore as first point of contact for a car in Germany.

[@farguc]

^ This. In Lithuania, When I was growing up, You basically went VW for reliability. You knew that if you drive VW, you will be ok. If you couldn't afford VW you went for an Opel, and hoped it was one of the good ones. People stayed away from french cars, and american cars. German and Japaense cars are the ones you see that are 30+ years old still on the road. Meanwhile nowadays, I fear buying a new VW. I feel confident driving a KIA EV more so than an id.4

[@preke953]

Basically what happens if u let shareholders grip a company that sells actual irl products.

[@Dufffaaa93]

If you cant afford VW then buy a Škoda

[@OffGridInvestor]

They're trying to grab on to this "German cars are high class luxury" thing. But they NEVER WERE a luxury car brand.

[@mvee05]

@@Dufffaaa93yeah opel are shit

[@Ummo2850]

In Germany automakers they’re very rigid, stubborn bordering on arrogance and will cause losses to save or push egos. Every time , seen this in first person. Very sad.

[@miscbits6399]

It's not just automakers. I've had similar run ins with German computer hardware and software suppliers. It's not necessarily ego, so much as being completely unable to comprehend why a customer might want something done a certain way. The Ego part comes in when they dismiss such things out of hand and/or become completely unwilling to adapt to customer demands Suse systems actually ran away from their support contract with us rather than admit what they had provided wouldn't scale to high loads (This was back when they were owned by Novell - they wouldn't even respond to senior Novell executives trying to find out what was going on) My experience is that the further south you go in Germany the worse the problem becomes and once you cross into the german speaking regons of Switzerland the atttitude is virtually insufferable

[@nanostar6138]

Am I the only person that wants less tech In cars. Honestly just a Bluetooth connection to the sound system would be enough for me. I would love to do a classic car conversion for this reason alone

[@Rusty_Shackleford099]

You aren't the only person. There are a lot more of us than many realize. And every time someone takes their car in for an infotainment system repair only to be told that the the parts are no longer available or that the repair will cost more than the car is worth, our numbers grow.

[@diamondminer8577]

Absolutely true, i find enjoyment in cars with not much technology

[@evangellydonut]

my 2020 Porsche Cayman GTS 4.0 infotainment (and creature comfort) system is about as technologically advanced as my 2009 Cayman S with a new head-unit... and that's exactly how I wanted it. Driving dynamic is the only real upgrade.

[@Alexsdiver]

Exactly! No need for so much tech. It’s taking driving pleasure away.

[@omeryehezkely3096]

It is usually called "being old". It is the part of life that usually comes prior to death.

[@000T00b]

As former owner of 2 Golf GTI’s, I will never be going to VW again. They;ve totally over-priced themselves out of any residual customer loyalty.

[@stevenmaginnis1965]

Volkswagen only sells the Golf GTI and R in America now, and it boasts - BOASTS! - about 83 percent of its U.S. sales being SUVs. This is the same company that wouldn't pander to base American tastes in the 1950s? I think I'll keep my base Mark 6 Golf, thank you.

[@madanto2394]

​@@stevenmaginnis1965in Britain that new Ford explorer junker is only available as an ev but the U.S available with a 3L twin turbo.

[@madanto2394]

Anno $£50k for a mk8 golf r is eye watering

[@jaybretv4346]

My engine light is permanently on.

[@LogicallyAnswered]

Not surprised haha

[@HeathenScents]

Das Auto! 🛑

[@PopeDope69-420]

I’ve learned that German car sensors just tell you when to spend $150 on new sensors. Nothing has ever actually been wrong with my GTI. The car is great except for that.

[@rufuspub]

It is supposed to be, I would be concerned if it was not.

[@Lvvcassss]

Then...fix your engine?

[@steveg2288]

Sad to say as a previous VW owner that their cars in terms of design and quality are now probably inferior to Renault. A few years ago that would have been unimaginable.

[@farguc]

Grew up a VAG fan. Mk1,2,3 Golfs, Passats, Corraddos, Sirroccos, all of them loved them. B5.5 Passat with a PD130 was a unit. MK5 Golf GTI to this day is my favourite car. Driving a Skoda Scala right now(family life) and eyeing up an octavia RS Estate right now. But sad reality is that even as a fan I can't disagree. Why would you go for VW today? 1. If you want an EV, go with Koreans or Tesla or Volvo(Polestar) or if you want cheap value, chinese EVs like BYD or MG 2. If you want an ICE car, why would you ever go for VAG? Their newer engines are nowhere near the quality of the engines from the 90s or 00s 3. If you want a hybrid, Japanese cars(toyota, Honda) are far superior. So ultimately I fail to see a reason to get a VW today, It does not provide best EV experience, It does not provide the best ICE experience, it does not provide the best drive experience, it is not the best value proposition, it is not the best luxury product, and it sure as hell isn't a Premium Badge like their AUDI or Lambo divisions.

[@yordangrigorov6]

What's wrong with Renault, I'm driving Arkana and it's much better car than VW Taigo

[@Dadniel1st]

Bingo! Nissan qashqai Renault engine 150,000 miles no issues, vw transporter head gasket blow up after 130,000 miles.

[@yordangrigorov6]

@@Dadniel1st Fun part is Nissan tried to split their business from Renault, but now plan to purchase hybrid engines from the new Renault Geely joint venture called Horse 🤣

[@aaronbryan5095]

​@@yordangrigorov6 they missing the 'Manure' part behind 'Horse'

[@TheSektor13]

Well, quality of VW went down the drain years ago.

[@LogicallyAnswered]

😢

[@MetaView7]

VW engineering is unnecessarily complicated, resulting in many small and annoying malfunctions.

[@LynxStarAuto]

@@MetaView7Thats not accurate. These cars are fairly simple. Unless you're talking about a specific niche offering, but VW doesn't really have complex offerings anymore. That's left to Audi and Bentley. The problem with VW has been their cookie cutter approach to everything. The same 3 color exteriors, with the same 2 color interior options. They don't even include floor mats with the cars anymore. And then, they went all in on EV's, when that was the biggest money grab scandal of recent times. Just wait a couple of years until we get the PBS documentary on the green movement scam...

[@Jushwa]

And they killed their Motorsport division.

[@lukeclifton4392]

@@LynxStarAutoVW engineering is definitely over complicated and is ruining reliability. I seriously question why Skoda vehicles are far more reliable than VW… and can only come to the conclusion that Skoda software is more basic/under tuned, leading to the better reliability rates.

[@foca2002]

Stock prices between American companies and the rest of the world is meaningless. The entire market cap of all of Germany corporations is less than the market cap of Amazon. The US stock market is absurdly overvalued.

[@linearcannon5078]

Not going to argue that US stock is overvalued, but German corporations are not doing fantastic either.

[@foca2002]

@@linearcannon5078 yes but they value dividends more than stock valuations, here in Brazil is the same thing.

[@pkhaloobonaccio9883]

institutional investor prop up European indeces, consider the bond market . It is significantly smaller than the us because there are no retail investor or very few. The US is in a position where individuals have to invest in order to retire meanwhile Europeans have pension to fall back on consequently EU stock market is going to be smaller due to lower participation of retail investors

[@fastmaker9091]

Dax PE ratio is 16 Sp500 PE is 28 If you correct for earnings growth (PEG ratio) they are not that far off

[@notusneo]

The correct answer is that Volkswagen need to lean more heavily to their sausage production

[@tetchuma]

Their new EV’s look more like a child’s tennis shoe than a car

[@divyanshbhutra5071]

Gosh I can't unsee it now 😂😂😂😂

[@Jeez001]

Problem is they are all based on same platform so Volkswagen must appear little bit cheaper so it doesn’t take market share from Audi

[@gdutfulkbhh7537]

EVs were the ONE opportunity for VW to rehabilitate themselves after Dieselgate. Cheating on pollution was bad enough, but taking back my VW and 'fixing' it in a way that crippled its fuel economy, and paying no compensation in Europe... VW poisoned their brand. I will never buy another ICE car from that group of companies, but I might have considered a battery vehicle... if all their offerings weren't such a hot mess.

[@divyanshbhutra5071]

@@gdutfulkbhh7537 Fair... Whenever a brand starts relying on their brand name to sell products rather than on the strength of the product, know that the downfall has begun.

[@bman977]

​@@gdutfulkbhh7537 they didnt pay in South Africa and some of their cars have hit the million bucks mark

[@AJM-ov5dw]

What happened was they've forgotten the golden rule "keep it simple ,stupid" you can't own one without the dash constantly lit like a Christmas tree problems,problems, not much but!!

[@AlhamdulilahSoldier]

I still drive my Golf 2 1989, 742k km

[@bartsmets251]

All automakers that bet heavily on EVs are doing poorly. Toyota is doing well because they spend zero money on EVs and instead went with the much more economically viable hybrids. VW not only made a mistake investing in EVs but also 'modernizing' things that were their traditional strengths. The cockpit of the Golf 8 is absolutely dreadful and because they stopped developing their ICE engines it is mechanically still the same as the Golf 7, only cheaper made. I'm a big fan of the brand, have owned 3 of them and currently own a Golf 7 R (which is truly brilliant), but having test driven the current model I would never consider 'upgrading'. Ferdinand Piech dying was really a major loss to the company, the 'forward thinking' MBA types are running VW into to ground, breaks my heart.

[@arnoldmbuthia2687]

BYD is essentially an EV company. A new EV company.

[@FizzyGajing]

Dude, at least think first before you type. A lot of Chinese companies are EV. Also, you're not arguing that Tesla is a goner just because of one poor quarterly earnings, right?

[@saellenx3528]

​@@FizzyGajingTesla stock crashed from 400$ to 180$ as of right now. Cybertruck turned put to be garbage and Elmo bro sold 40B of his own stock. Bro is begging Buffet to buy Tesla stock these days.😂😂

[@FizzyGajing]

@@saellenx3528 Oh no, Tesla stock crashed😲, Im shock. Look, I know that Tesla stock declined but it's not performing poorly as the OP mentioned. Tesla's growth is not meeting investors expectations but they are still profitable.

[@evitoonbundit2453]

So you overlook Tesla the ultimate bet on EV producing profitable, at scale, the highest market cap, soon delivering fully autonomous driving?

[@LarryNgetich]

Anything Volkswagen made after Piëch sucked.

[@stevemartin7464]

Yup, old VWs were great, especially the Golf, perhaps old Passats were less great but generally VW was seen as quality and reliable, now? Not so much.

[@Pamlicojdjdj1487]

Beg to differ. The Piech era VWs looked great with beautiful interiors but that time period also coincides with the decline in quality and reliability. Piech threw all the money at the places the customer saw and touch, cheapening out where it matter the most😂

[@Pamlicojdjdj1487]

@@stevemartin7464incorrect

[@yordangrigorov6]

Skoda Octavia and Golf Variant now cost 30 000E, this is ridiculous :D

[@alexgauthier8689]

Range is only an issue with EV because of charging time. I Never put a full tank of gas, but it takes me 2 mins to fuel up. Once EV solves that people will use them.

[@rodh1404]

Charging time is only one of the problems with EVs. The cost of battery replacement, combined with how easy it is to damage the batteries, is another. Even if you can get 15 years of service out of a battery, if the cost of replacing it is more than a the car's worth, most of the time that car will be written off. Many repairers frequently recommend writing off EVs when they could be repaired which significantly increases the cost of insurance. Then there's the battery fires, which happen less frequently than with ICE's but they are very hard to put out. To the point where many fire departments often just let them burn out rather than trying to put them out so just about every battery fire results in the car being written off yet again. Finally, there's the issue of publicly available charging facilities because not everyone can charge at home. More dependable (and less expensive) charging infrastructure is needed, but that can cost a lot of money to set up and currently the profits are relatively low.

[@Rusty_Shackleford099]

@@rodh1404 You are quite correct. Those are all serious problems with EVs as a platform. But most consumers don't stop to think about things like those until after they have bought the car.

[@Yattayatta]

@@rodh1404 I agree with your assessment, I'd add that any ICE car that has an engine that shot is in the same sorry state though, that also goes for the gear box, if your gear box goes, the car is done. EVs don't have conventional gear boxes, so there are some upsides. The batteries are way too fragile in some EVs though, that is for sure.

[@rodh1404]

@@Yattayatta Yes, repairs that cost more than the vehicle is worth, whether that vehicle be an EV or an ICE vehicle, will usually write that vehicle off. The difference is that the cost of repair for an ICE vehicle is often much less than the cost of replacing an EV's battery. For example, if you need to replace the engine on a Toyota Corolla, I've seen quotes ranging from $1,500 to $4,500. To replace the battery of a Tesla Model Y would cost somewhere between $14,000 to $20,000. I've seen a news report from Canada where someone was quoted over $60,000 (Canadian) to replace the battery pack of a 2022 Hyundai Ioniq 5 which cost $55,000 (Canadian) brand new. Those are the prices when the work is done professionally. With an ICE, there are a number of people who have the tools and capability to do the job themselves, saving a significant amount of money. But with EVs, the job usually needs to be done professionally because most people don't have the skills or tools, and you don't want to make a mistake with that much electricity on the line. Particularly when some mistakes will start a battery fire or short out your vehicles' electrical system.

[@jmarxful]

Filling up my EV takes me 15 seconds. Or the time to plug it in when I get home. Sure it actually takes 7 hours but it happens while I'm sleeping so I don't notice it lol. Since I live in Hawaii and I have solar panels my electricity is free. In fact I actually make money off my panels when I have excess electricity to sell back to the grid.

[@djayjp]

One concrete example: building the ID Buzz with a built in bed and not including a camp mode such that ppl are literally resorting to putting bricks on the driver's seat to keep the HVAC from turning off (which still eventually turns off anyway)... 🤦‍♂️

[@jasonmugridge]

And it should of been about half the price to begin with.

[@dukehong7491]

Dog mode ftw!

[@Jasonfallen71]

Yep. But VW hired 10,000 software devs to write an OS. It’s garbage. Now VW are buying that tech from China. What do those 10,000 impossible-to-fire devs do? Write software that can at least provide basic controls like you mention first off. But they can’t. Dog mode? Camping mode with the heaters on and a roaring fire on the center screen? An app to let your car run the HVAC? I think they’ll just develop useless fluff.

[@tetchuma]

Volkswagen dropped the ball on the Mk8 GTI (which is the only iteration of the VW Golf still sold in the US) They removed the manual parking brake and gave it a really cheap interior. I’ve had an Mk7 and still have my MK 7.5 GTI Autobahn. I was wanting to get the newest GTI, but then I test drove one. The interior felt like the inside of a 8yo Ford Focus, with a very laggy infotainment system, and incredibly annoying haptic touch buttons on the steering wheel. Considering the price was much higher than the previous generation, it was a no-brainer to just keep my MK 7.5. This led me to believe that those in charge of new models do not know what the consumers want. My 2019 GTI is still under warranty, but I have not been given any updates on the 3G sundown… Which means I no longer have connectivity (remote access) to my car. I was told that I would get a 4G or 5G modem for my car in fall 2021… Then spring 2022… Then spring 2023… And now there is no mention whatsoever on fixing this. Even my local dealership in McKinney Texas, give me a definitive answer on when this can/will be fixed. This blatant disregard for the filling their current consumers concerns, tells me that I don’t want to buy another vehicle from them. My current GTI, “Wadsworth”, will most likely be my last Volkswagen (unless they do something about their business propositions)

[@sizif717]

Try the latest Honda Civic.

[@a_macaulay]

I agree, I've owned every generation of Golf (mk1-7) and both cabrios and the A3 hatchback, got into the mk8 and said no way. Very disappointing, I ended up buying a Mercedes instead.

[@Jushwa]

as a mk7 owner, same here. Saw the new Civic SI hybrid today with 200hp and 50mpg... I have loved this golf so much but honestly the new Civic might be the next move if mk9 or mk8.5 continue to follow this trend.

[@oxaile4021]

I'd argue the mk7.5 was the best looking Golf generation VW had made. And now we have the mk8... Boring, dull, uninspiring, ugh. Also their EVs... It's like they're intentionally trying to convince people EVs are bad and they should buy one of their ICE models instead. I was considering the ID.3/Cupra Born. But then i saw the BYD Dolphin coming to my country, went to see it and any will to buy the ID.3 disappeared immediately. Now i own a BYD Dolphin and whenever i see an ID.3 on the road i just think to myself: why would anyone buy that?

[@desireemeiring5763]

I gave up on GTi and got me a Volvo Hatch, a wee rocket that’s small but beautiful. I am on Volvo number 2. I love her. She not as quick blah blah blah but ticks all my boxes.

[@shadeblackwolf1508]

A bad rep is hard to repair

[@Anirossa]

just like a Volkswagen.

[@paddycoleman1472]

I can only speak as a long term (30 years) VW and Audi owner. Their cars have gone downhill in recent years. Exterior design of VW and Audi was poor and overshadowed by Skoda until recently. As for the interiors, oh my goodness what on earth has happened… not only is the design and ergonomics poor but the quality of materials is seriously low rent. Dacia can give VW a run for its money. We recently had a new VW Polo as a loan car and the amount of hard, cheap plastic and lack of attention to detail was shocking. My latest A4 clearly demonstrates the penny pinching that has gone on over the years with the removal of boot hooks, power socket in the boot and many other small details. It reminds me of MG Rover’s Project Drive back in the 2000s. If you want to sell a premium product/brand then this sort of approach is disastrous. To be fair, I have seen it in the past when Audi went through a similar phase but this was soon put right. VAG need to get back to what they do best and focus on quality, design and attention to detail plus do something about prices! 50K for a new Audi A4 is insane.

[@davidbrayshaw3529]

It sounds like my w203 Mercedes. Cheap and nasty. A friend of mine purchased a newer C class against my pleas. 3 months later she sold it and copped the loss. My mates A class AMG thing. It's a cheap and nasty car with a hot engine and nice exhaust note. My other friends Audi (10 years ago?) Constant electrical issues. We're all Japanese, these days.

[@A320_shrek]

I live in Wolfsburg the home of Volkswagen, my parents work at Volkswagen and I’m a student in a Volkswagen sponsored school. I’ve never noticed anything wrong until I watched this video.

[@Bomb1es]

Passat interior in 2012 is much better than the brand new 2024 like how can you go worse when designing vw interiors...

[@farguc]

And 2012 Passat( B7) has much worse built quality than their B5.5 or B5 models. The last somewhat premium Passat was B5.5 before they decided to go cheepy with the materials, and electric handbreak that broke on every single one of those passats. Passat back in early 00s/90s was a seriously nice car. Nothing overly premium, but nothing cheap.

[@Pamlicojdjdj1487]

Boooooo😂

[@Jeez001]

China was major source of sales and that is falling due to their EV shift

[@IamAWESOME3980]

Lmao

[@andrewtate5252]

Their EV "shift" in china crashed. Sales are down 40% and the trend is downwards

[@Jordan-Ramses]

China is a scam. They will let you invest money, steal your tech and then push you out of the market with government intervention. People are finally realizing.

[@marczhu7473]

And Russia market loss

[@Yattayatta]

@@andrewtate5252 As someone that lives part time in China, EVs are doing great, but they reached a bit of a saturation point, the economy over there is also doing poorly at the moment so more expensive cars are not selling all that well. Make no mistake though, EVs are very popular in the Chinese market, it's really easy to charge in all of central and eastern China, you find them all over the place.

[@mattmackewich9699]

Diesel-Gate actually made me respect them more.

[@LogicallyAnswered]

😂

[@abigaelbalbuena1917]

I'd love to hear your thought process on that one

[@thiagolima5232]

very brands make diselgate

[@guser7137]

@@abigaelbalbuena1917 It was not about skirting the regulations. It was about the company wanting to be able to exit diesel and write off the loss. The point of the emissions test is it targets a specific performance criteria. It is optimal conditions. Cars all do that. That is why you generally can't see similar economy in a vehicle on the road.

[@isabella3746]

Being able to intelligently adjust your car's performance to road condition is an extremely valuable feature. Too bad it's used in emission tests.

[@GoryNych-ru3op]

After doing research for months, I made a $1M investment return and spent $360K on a bentley GT, did only 200 miles before the check engine light came on, now they can’t take it off, VW's issues with software add to the mess

[@AlexMorgan4live]

Totally agree, their software issues are a big problem even on the Audi’s. You spoke about returns. Are your results really based on research or luck. how can you tell? I’m also an investor often, luck is not given its credit.

[@GoryNych-ru3op]

You can tell if its not just luck by its consistency. research was the challenge until it led to Emily Ava Milligan, a top fund manager, her strategy made 320k into this and counting.

[@AlexMorgan4live]

I pasted her name into my browser, and her page popped right up. I quickly realized how popular her sessions were. I wish I had your example earlier. Thanks for the share

[@LogicallyAnswered]

Oof

[@Jushwa]

@@LogicallyAnsweredYou're replying to/ got fooled by a bot/scammer 😆 even hearted the comment. Read the replies.

[@IFRYRCE]

Everything you have said here about VW and their CEO here is also true of GM and Mary Barra. They both lost trust around the same time (GM ignition switch, VW emissions) They both decided to go all in on EVs over the objections of the board. Both CEOs stan Tesla (Mary doesn't seem to like Elon, but she's definitely trying to turn GM into Tesla and embracing the same core business pillars - self driving and EVs) Both lost badly. The only major difference is that Mary bought back 10b worth of stock with borrowed money at the end of last year and so GM's stock price is doing slightly better.

[@RUHappyATM]

I don't mind VW. However, what is really maddening is the penalty they paid to the USA (dieselgate) is a lot more than what they paid to other countries. Would I buy a VW? No.

[@thiagolima5232]

many brands make diselgate

[@RUHappyATM]

@@thiagolima5232 I don't see the USA imposing huge fines on the other companies.

[@almac9203]

​@@RUHappyATMVW was ripped off. They had unexplained variances between real world emissions and offical figures but they weren't the only one with Mercedes and some French and Japanese manufacturers also having the same issues. The main difference was VW admitted their wrongdoing whereas the others lied and refused to admit the truth. Other manufacturers also got fined but they got fined small amounts because it was difficult to prove the source of the variances. If VW had done what other companies did they wouldn't have got fined such huge amounts because the investigators couldn't find the offending software without VW admitting it. You would be surprised at the number of other manufacturers that got away with similar crimes.

[@RUHappyATM]

@@almac9203 BS. SW can be analysed.

[@almac9203]

@@RUHappyATM it can be but it is very difficult without their cooperation. If you don't believe what I say then go and look into the variances between the official figures and real world figures across other manufacturers fleets at the same time as VW. I recall something like two thirds of the cars tested had unexplained variances between the official figures and tested figures yet VW was the only one to have the book thrown at them. I will give you an example, some of the Mercedes Benz Euro 6 vehicles were found to be equipped with emission cheating devices according to the Stuttgart court. This came out in April 2024. Renault is another brand that had emission scandals as well. BMW were also accused of Emission scandals as well but they denied it. Go through your favourite car company and search if they had an emission scandal and you will see similar accusations but only VW were stupid enough to admit it.

[@TiTAN-fu6nf]

You got the Bugatti take over wrong, they still own 45% of Bugatti. Also they got 24% of Rimac in exchange. Continuing they sold the Porsche AG shares to the Porsche SE. Bad framing ngl

[@davidbrayshaw3529]

And I believe that Porsche owns shares in VW, not the other way around.

[@garywayell7211]

From 2004 i bought my first Toyota,i was that impressed by reliability and build quality, im now on my 3rd Toyota. 3 cars in twenty years never had a breakdown,and every time it went for a service it never had any major problemsToyota cars are that reliable everybody should own one

[@madanto2394]

Or a lexus

[@Reminisciences]

"Making the jump", the biggest mistake the market ever made was treating EVs not as an alternative to ICE but as an "inevitability" that must be forced on an unwilling consumer

[@stevemartin7464]

Very true, and based on literally no logical data to back the sanity of the idea.

[@godlugner5327]

Nobody mentioned Volkswagens most produced inventory item yet? Allow me... It's a sausage

[@c0d3warrior]

Is this still true though? (I most like was 10 years ago.)

[@johnnyr.6320]

You can buy the sausage and the ketchup in a lot of North German supermarkets. Not bad sausages to be honest. VW's canteen was highly regarded for the sausage which they made themselves so the head office saw it as an opportunity and they sell well.

[@gregculverwell]

From my perspective, VW's problems are endemic to all German manufacturers. It really comes down to quality and value for money. It used to be that Germany cars were more expensive than those from other countries but made sense because of their reliability and durability. But in the late 90s they collectively decided that it was better to build the cars as cheaply as possible while drastically cutting development costs - no more long and extensive testing before putting the car on the market. Instead they worked hard on 'showroom appeal ' and leave it to the customer to discover the car's weaknesses The ID4 exemplifies that - it's obvious that they did not bother to test the software in the real world.

[@jasonmugridge]

It was Mercedes who did this when it went from a company run by engineering to one run by marketing and accounts. The ID4 was rushed into production as VW hadn't got anything ready and they were going to get heavily fined in Europe if they didn't sell EV's All establishment car companies stopped really innovating about 40 years ago. Nissan even said publicly back in the 90's that there was no point them innovating any more until the competition caught up as it wasn't improving their sales. VW took all their old stuff to China 40 years ago when the Chinese were desperate for anything. This was a great idea at first and they made a killing, however they didn't both to improve their offering and now they are paying the price when the local competition is so good.

[@Morpheus-pt3wq]

@@jasonmugridge i honestly don´t get this "fined in Europe if they didn´t sell EVs". Why are politicians deciding, what companies will produce and what people should buy and own? Not to mention they can change their decisions on a whim and activists/lobbyists are now basically ruling the EU. Seems more like a time machine to the past (CCCP), than anything else - and to top it off, it was proven, that CCCP´s way of doing things never worked! Europe no longer offers the stability it used to. Everybody just wants to play it "safe". It´s no wonder, there are no large tech companies in EU and the last one is (Philips) is dying. EU should have both software and hardware companies and compete on global market with everyone else, not just make cars. Cars will eventually fully saturate the market - what will EU do then? Kneel in the corner and die of hunger? Increasing car turnover rate by reducing their reliability is not the answer - and on top of that, it´s a waste of materials and labor.

[@davidbrayshaw3529]

Yep. Let's make rubbish cars and sell them for as much as possible because that badge says quality. In the meantime the Japanese were saying "let's make the best cars we possibly can for the lowest prices that we can.

[@gregculverwell]

@@davidbrayshaw3529 The Japanese, with the exception of Nissan and Subaru!

[@davidbrayshaw3529]

@@gregculverwell I could possibly add Bitzrmissy (Mitsubishi) to your list. Fair call, there. We're now a Honda/Mazda/Toyota family. My wife is looking forward to picking up her Suzuki Jimny, soon. Hopefully that can maintain its decency in the reliability stakes, because let me assure you, they're not performance cars!

[@PhilippBlum]

German automotive industry collapsing? What could possibly go wrong? It's only involved in 10% of economic output. Nothing to see.

[@itstuffiwan4997]

Under 5% GDP and around 7% of the workforce actually.

[@PhilippBlum]

@@itstuffiwan4997 30.10.2022 ntv Title: "Vertreibt die Energiekrise die deutsche Autoindustrie?" Quote: "Hier werden immerhin in Summe über alles 20 Prozent des deutschen Bruttoinlandsproduktes (BIP) und rund 10 Prozent der industriellen Wertschöpfung erwirtschaftet." 20% GDP in 2022 and 10% industrial

[@PhilippBlum]

@@itstuffiwan4997 I can only find this number for 2017. The share may have increased.

[@itstuffiwan4997]

@@PhilippBlum Zahlen haben eine Bedeutung. 10% economic output sind nicht 10% der industriellen Wertschöpfung. Die Industrie macht ca. 24% des BIP aus. Laut dem Münchner MIWI Institut sind es 5% des GDP und direkt und indirekt 7% der Beschäftigten. Und die Frage ist, ob du nun aktuelle Zahlen nimmst, vom Peak von 6 Millionen Autos aus deutscher Produktion sind wir weit entfernt. Die Industrie macht sich in ihrer Außendarstellung größer als sie ist. Ja nach eigens in Auftrag gegebener Studie packt man den Maschinenbau mit dazu bei der Wertschöpfung oder zählt die Beschäftigten der Werkstätten und Autohäuser, die eben nicht verschwinden, auch wenn wir keine eigenen Autos bauen würden wie andere Länder. Und die großen Gewinne fuhren die Deutschen Autofirmen schon lange in China ein, mit Chinesischen Arbeitskräften für dein Chinesischen Markt. Das Ergebnis ist, dass dort nun das Know-how ist, und wir von anderen Märkten verdrängt werden und bald auch hier Konkurrenz bekommen, wie vorher durch die Japaner, nur mal 10.

[@DeltaHD2109]

In germany we say: "Totgesagte leben länger"

[@LogicallyAnswered]

Hahaha, had to translate that one

[@toyotaprius79]

In Ireland we say, "They're never not at it again"

[@stevenweiss2148]

??? we dont say things like that here

[@ct4074]

Nazis keep coming back from the grave. They're now a plague in Ukraine and the USA.

[@davidbrayshaw3529]

In Australia we say "Bring back the German cars from the last century". German cars have a deserved bad reputation, here. It's not helped by terrible after sales service. And yes, I've owned a number of them, as have several of my friends.

[@Lololol45]

I had a 2011 5 Cyl 2.5 Jetta. It served me well for 10 years at which point, every noise seemed to cost an arm and a leg to fix so I traded it in. It did serve me almost trouble free till that point for 235,000 miles!

[@jamespn]

We had a 2007 VW Jetta, A/C compressor failed, vacuum pump failed, went through 3 sets of rear brake pads, 4 alloy wheels, 3 batteries, coolant expansion tank, and headliner failed. Got rear ended twice and got totaled out in a flood. The car was a blast to drive, and was indestructible, my daughter did her best to kill it, but rising flood water did.

[@Vx3r-e7y]

I had bought a new vw polo 2 years ago and sold it recently ..never ever going back to a vw again ..

[@talion7268]

U gotta elaborate more, we're planning on getting one

[@Cemenmen1]

​@@talion7268😰

[@Pamlicojdjdj1487]

Bot fake poster😂

[@foxesamu]

Volkswagen used to offer a relatively premium, well-engineered and designed product at a mostly mainstream price. Think of the early 2000s Mk4 Golf and Jetta, B5/B6 Passat, etc. I think their downfall first started with Ferdinand Piech, who tried to push them upmarket with the flop Phaeton, Touareg, CC, etc, and dumped money into developing the Bugatti Veyron, the W8 and W12, and other costly passion projects (along with his successor Pischetsrieder, who he advised). Then Winterkorn stepped in and drove VW back downmarket in a failed attempt to capture more US sales - we got bland, forgettable and cheaply designed products which only made VW look like a bit player rather than an intentional niche brand here. Then Dieselgate and EV investing were the nail in the coffin. Now we’re stuck with an extremely aged Audi lineup and a pathetic presence for VW in the US along with fading relevance in Europe and China. Really sad as a euro car fan.

[@bikeman9899]

Have VW made mistakes? You bet. But when we decided to buy a new EV, we chose the ID4. Built in Tennessee now. We have 25K on the clock now. Verdict? Excellent, not perfect, but a very, very solid machine. The problem with EV sales in general is that they are still too expensive for the average car buyer. If Vw or GM or whoever, sold a reliable EV for 30K, it would fly off the lots. But, the average price of a new car (ICE and EVs) is close to 48K in the US. Loanns are now 68 months long. 25 years ago , 3 years or 4 years was the norm. Incomes have not kept pace.

[@Bomb1es]

Volkswagen should have invested the money to create actually realiable vehicles. Like decided to remove the starter from a hybrid and if the replaicement process breaks its a 2k fix.

[@renno0301]

BYD has opened a dealership in my city in Brazil a few months ago (near São Paulo and Rio, 2.3M pop.) and it's been impressive to see how fast EVs are appearing in the streets.

[@shyviking]

"it's been impressive to see how fast EVs are appearing in the streets.". Because it is basically a better alternative for 80-90% of us than ICEs. The development potential in ICEs seems to be limited, whereas there is still a lot of potential for development in EVs. Therein lies the difference. So if VW, Toyota and/or GM fails at that, they will become irrelevant, compared to, say, Tesla, BYD, Geely etc. Maybe not tomorrow or next year, but not decades away, either.

[@franciskingu5398]

Short sighted ... The stock price is a poor indicator of success 😢

[@AFSienko]

Speaking from a European perspective, here Volkswagen is suffering the most at the hands of a company they actually own - Skoda! Originally Skoda was supposed to be the bargain basement brand to VW. In reality, Skoda cars are not only cheaper (giving you a lavish amount of standard equipment that's optional and expensive in VW cars), but they are generally becoming seen as more reliable and better quality. The only thing left for VW is badge recognition - and is that worth spending more money for in this highly competitive segment?

[@isabella3746]

IMO the issue with VW is a lack of "balance": * Overpromised and overconcentrated in EV, but underdelivered. * Overinvested in autonomous driving but not enough in (useful) digitalization. * Stuck in echo chamber of ESG stuff. Not that ESG is bad, just that general consumers care about it less than you think. * An internal culture overly guilt-tripped by Dieselgate that everyone wants to "play safe" resulting in curbed innovation.

[@davidbeckenbaugh9598]

The number one reason VW is dropping in the US market is reliability. Just a few years ago, VW had one of the very last station wagon cars left in the world with the Passat. And it was VERY popular for those of us that wanted that utility. Even Subaru no longer makes that style car, and that was Sub's 'bread and butter' for most of their life here in America. But no one wanted the FORD version of a wagon (Fix Or Repair Daily). Now we have the EV's, which are also FORD. That VW's Mercedes arm did not read the American market well sent Mercedes into a death spiral. Mercedes figured that most buyers use their cars just a ew years, then trade them in for a newere mofel. So they DESIGNED their car to just barely make it to the end of their warranty term, figuring everyone will trade them in and get new cars. But the majority of Americans will drive them until they have 200k miles on them before they are getting worn out. A newer Mercedes is very difficult to get that far without many major repairs. BMW did the same thing but they have learned this a lot faster than VW/Mercedes. Their cars are returning to reliable machines. VW and Mercedes are WAY behind. Reliability is killing VW in Europe and America, nothing else. As far as Chinese EV's are concerned, they are no longer much of a threat. People got ticked off that the reliability was at the bottom of all car brands.That China paid to have these cars dumped into Europe got people even more upset. The China car problem is gone for the US. But the reason it was a problem in the first place is still in existence for VW. The Chinese government is subsidizing the Chinese brands....... But not VW. They lost all their subsidies in China so they can no longer compete. They have lost their biggest market. Ouch. As to the reason Chinese EV's are no longer a threat in Europe and America, here is an excellent vid put together by 'China Observer'..... kzbin.info/www/bejne/e2bVm6iKiqaZsJI&ab_channel=ChinaObserver

[@firstprib7742]

You do know that china observer is an anti china propaganda channel. Google search china observer falun gong funding.

[@bend8353]

VW is crap, but your view is vey bias

[@davidbeckenbaugh9598]

@@bend8353 Bias in what way? I included all facts that I thought were applicable to why VW is failing and it is, mostly, the VW's I am fixing in my shop have the same electrical faults over and over and over and.... you get the idea. They are, simply, unreliable. I need a replacement for me 1985 Subaru wagon (totaled by a drunk that hit it on the side of the road by my apartment. Argh.) and the Passat is the only car that even resembles it. But I do NOT want to fix my own car every time I want to go fishing somewhere. Now how in the world would that be a biased view. I WANT THE CAR. I DON'T want the constant repairs.

[@davidk.d.7591]

VW cars far more about the Chinese and European markets than the American market

[@davidbeckenbaugh9598]

@@davidk.d.7591 I have to agree with that. Small wagons USED to be very popular.. until the SUV craze. They gradually disappeared. But 'estate cars' are still selling in Europe. And many Americans are amazed that my old Subaru wagon has or interior space than a Ford Explorer or, even, a Tahoe. But it does AND gets about 25% better fuel mileage. So, yes, the markets are quite different. Americans always seem to want much bigger. Our house is a 3 bed 2 bath. ITY sits in an area dominated by 'McMansions'. % bed, 4 bath...And half the house sits empty 99% of the time. And that 99% of the time it is empty, you still pay taxes, maintenance, and heat the place. We have one empty room, and have emptied the living room of the coffee table and a chair, and relatives have slept on the floor. Works well enough. And only 1% of the time (probably less). Markets. Americans seem to not understand the difference in what they WANT, and what they NEED. Volkswagen seems to try and give people what they NEED. So, yes, the other markets are quite different. And I need a small wagon (estate car) that is reliable. I would LOVE a Mercedes Estate Car. But not an unreliable newer one. Looking for a 'gently used' mid-80's..... You know, a EUROPEAN type thing.

[@bradleybbb]

Couldn't be more off base about just taking an ICE vehicle and "convert" it to electric. The vehicle has to be engineered from the ground up. Outside looks the same/ not the inside.

[@nsk370]

Clearly a guy that doesn't really know much about automotive industry

[@peglor]

Even when they engineer the car to be electric from the ground up they still can't seem to do it without losing the space to store the spare tire, which is a fundamental requirement for anyone that actually uses a car for what it's good at, namely getting people to places well outside urban areas that are not served by public transport. Imagine willingly signing up to make a 10-15 minute delay to change a flat tire into a multiple hour delay waiting for a call out. The tire sealing kits from what I've read about them, write off the tire (As well as ruining the wheel balance), and are only a get you home measure rather than a fix. Every car I've owned has a spare the same size as the rest of the tires so there's no compromise at all in swapping it out, and it's come in useful enough times that I'm happy to keep it that way.

[@Yattayatta]

There are conversion kits sold for old ICE cars to turn them into EVs, they work quite well.

[@oxaile4021]

@@Yattayatta An EV developed on an ICE platform will always be inferior to an EV developed on a fully electric platform.

[@PearComputingDevices]

I don't see the EV market really taking off without government push. The real solution at this point I believe is hybrids.

[@philallen7626]

It needs a huge push on charging infrastructure, I'd argue that is where governments should focus their efforts. I'm a bit wary of hybrids. Modern cars are already hard and expensive to repair. The added complexity, with a lot more stuff being crammed into engine bays, will push up repair costs even higher, and resulting in shorter working lives vs straight ICE cars (Toyota, and probably Honda, excepted).

[@yulusleonard985]

Lol it depends on your gasoline logistic. Some countries no longer able afford gasoline import and you either drive EV or get a bike.

[@PearComputingDevices]

@yulusleonard985 I am talking about in America. That's probably somewhat true of places like India and hey there's a market for it. But it's not remotely the kind of market many had been lead to believe and that's my point here. It's obvious to me, has been long before now too. It's just not practical for most here in America, thus it's not worth the cost and effort. Still isn't. I think it's mostly affordable battery technology that holds EVs back. But they'll still sell where it makes sense. Where they don't they won't and they basically haven't. Not much of a shock.

[@yulusleonard985]

@@PearComputingDevices yea I know you are American when talking about EV without mentioning insane logistic of gasoline. Because countries are pushing for EV not because environment but they just want too stop importing gasoline. Batteries already affordable as long you can import them from China, since its $55 for each kwh over there.

[@PearComputingDevices]

@yulusleonard985 You live in another world. Our options are vast but definitely not that cheap for sure. I am talking about the realities in America. Especially rural America because that's my lived experience. We don't need to worry about the insane logistics of gasoline. We're basically walking on oil. Most people don't remotely need to worry about such things, yet in many poor countries its a daily struggle. I get it. Just as I also said EVs will sell where they make the most sense in a free market. If it makes sense to buy one people will and if they don't, they won't. Even in our metropolitan areas they're not selling so that's why EV makers are struggling and again this was just common sense from a supply/demand perspective. The early adopters already bought their toys and now things are a bit stagnant. People are just now discovering what I've been talking about for over 3 years. If anything we have an over saturation of supply verses demand. But in other countries where it makes sense maybe that's not the case there. It's just markets figuring things out.

[@drsyed44]

Experiencing multiple losses as a new trader can be disheartening, but it's important to remember that setbacks are a natural part of the learning curve. Each loss is an opportunity to gain valuable insights and strengthen your skills. Take comfort in knowing that every successful trader has faced similar challenges. If you are not ready for the mental stress in trading just do copytrade instead. Less stress and easy.

[@Williampart]

I would greatly appreciate it if you could kindly provide me with an explanation of what copy trading entails.

[@drsyed44]

Imagine you're playing a game with a friend who's a pro. Instead of struggling on your own, you watch and copy their moves to win. Copy trading is similar in finance. You follow experienced investors' decisions, mimicking their trades to learn and potentially profit in the market.

[@OFFICIALMATTRIFF]

May I kindly inquire about your experience with copy trading and your thoughts on its effectiveness as an investment strategy?

[@phil4610]

Kindly share who you copy??

[@drsyed44]

He's a renowned hedgefund manager

[@paralleldimensions_E]

One advantage the VW group has is the large porfolio of mainstream brands like VW, Audi, Skoda, SEAT etc. And these 'assets' can be spun off, sold as stand-alone units. Maybe by splitting VW into totally independent and un-grouped companies, they can survive individually and innovate. Shareholders will also see a decent exit strategy too, so as to minimize losses, but maybe even turn some decent ROI on their holdings.

[@shadowninja6689]

Strongly disagree with what you've been saying that investing heavily in EV's is a mistake and Toyota is making the right decisions. Automakers, especially big ones that sell millions of vehicles a year, won't be able to shift to EV's fast enough by the time consumer sentiment starts to move strongly in that direction. Toyota and VW's current leadership are basically guaranteeing that BYD, Tesla, and other EV startups (many of them Chinese) will either put them out of business or cannibalize a significant chunk of market share over the next decade. You should take a much closer look at what's been happening in the Chines automarket if you think that EV's will never take off.

[@Warfoki]

China's market works, because the CCP is extremely aggressively subsidizes it. They put so much money into making EVs, that car companies barely even need to sell the stuff, because governmental subsidies alone keep them chugging. The CCP is eating immense financial losses on that, but they don't care, because they hope they can practically monopolize the international market and became THE car supplier. This is failing. At first there was a massive wave of adaption in China, largely thanks to subsidies, but this slowed down to a crawl now that most people who wanted an EV, have one. The US market closed off for them, especially after the latest 100%+ tariff increase from Biden, to protect the local car industry. The EU is in the process of passing similar tariffs to prevent its own industry getting bulldozed by China. Without government subsidies, BYD is not viable, and without a successful global takeover of the car market, the CCP will stop subsidizing them eventually.

[@mrmansville9340]

y the time consumer sentiment starts to move strongly in that direction

[@kchankchan]

@@Warfoki Which country is the largest car Exporter on the planet? EU passing tariffs will only speed up its own demise. Currently 1 in 3 cars from Germany is sold in China, they too can play the tariff game

[@ZebraAfrica]

In my 20's I wanted VW and Mercedes Benz, they were good reliable cars. Despite what happened, I sill lean towards diesels. Today I would not touch either brands, I'll go for a reliable boring to drive Toyota, at least it will last.

[@rtothec1234]

They had cool looking cars but I never met anyone in Canada who did not regret owning a VW.

[@Call-me-James]

Software was their big downfall. Their ID series came out in 2020, but they didn't get the software to work properly until 2023. The software is working now, but probably too late to save the company.

[@santostv.]

Especially in the Chinese market apparently they love karaoke and vw didn’t have it meanwhile Chinese brand did have it, it’s a bit silly but China like India and others leapfrogged technologies.

[@markm0000]

I have a VW and it sucks. Last German car I ever buy. I used to admire Mercedes when I was a boy. Not anymore.

[@jcshanghai07]

Anyone who hasn't heard of BYD hasn't been paying attention. They're huge in Australia - my wife just bought one. You'll be hearing much more about them if you haven't heard about them yet.

[@Pamlicojdjdj1487]

Communist cars

[@AndiKola]

I don't know. Both my Golfs have been very reliable and I'm quite happy with them. Though it will be a long long time before I ditch them for an EV or another Diesel with "futuristic tech" like touch screen buttons or self driving, an unreliable technology that's not ready for production and probably won't ever be in our lifetime (Tesla's infotainment system also sucks balls BTW)

[@InfoSecGuardian]

Software for all these automakers is huge issue. They are not software companies AND when it comes time for the board to invest money, things like performance, economy, and safety come before software. The answer isn't difficult. Install the computer hardware and let the consumer choose options of which Operating System and Software provider they want to use. Then, let suppliers like Microsoft and Apple compete for the O/S and let other third party software developers compete with which software will ride on that O/S. This could include everything from the Infotainment system to the customizable digital virtual cockpit. It would also enable consumers, if they found their choice wasn't keeping up OR the business failed, that they could change software providers... having a whole new look and feel to their experience. Meanwhile, the physical CAR of which car manufactures are actually good at, perform as they should. Note it also does not help that Telco's eliminated 3G, the technology a lot of these car manufactures depended on for their mobile app interfaces. So, now a bunch of consumers are driving around with technology that doesn't work. It's baffling they can't just swap out a chip with one that will work with 5G.

[@altair1405]

1:19 wtf is this red car? 100% not a tesla

[@mikapeltokorpi7671]

Older Model S

[@linearcannon5078]

100% tesla.

[@sniper7004]

8:23 I didnt look into this specific recall, but its not the first time that it happend in FAV group. The problem is that pumps are most of the times outsourced

[@dee-jay45]

This is what happens when you focus on over-engineering instead of tangible & useful results.

[@shyguyyoshi]

Growing up as a kid, I wanted a Beetle so bad. By the time that I became an adult, they were very expensive relative to the size/practicality and didn’t have the same look that made them famous to begin with.

[@Windows98R]

The beetle didn’t really change though? Yes the design has evolved but like the 911, you can show any of the Beetle generations to anyone and they’ll figure out that it’s from the same lineup.

[@kamrantaherkhani2066]

Hi , where do can I get the latest quarterly report of the companies? I like the graphs on google finance but they are not always updated.

[@LogicallyAnswered]

Almost all public companies post them on their own websites. Alternatively, you can find it on the SECs website for American companies. You can just look up Apple quarterly report for example.

[@Franciscoman23]

From mid 90's up to around 2010 VW's cars were nicer than the competition, they felt and looked better. Of course, under the hood they were all plastic, but for the first owner they were the best car they could get at any given price point. After that they started cost cutting, but still had an edge over the competition. This past few years tho, they replaced they technical lead with trend chasing, so I am glad the market is responding

[@perihelion7798]

There is an overused phrase, 'Get woke - Go broke'. However, it is appropriate for many auto manufacturers, who, instead of listening to the consumers, decided to listen to ignorant politicians instead. Now Ford, GM, and Stellantis are all facing a fiscal debacle of their own making. The public does not want EVs. They are very expensive, costly to insure and repair, and have lousy driving range and excessive charging times. They depreciate like a huge ship anchor. While serving as CEO, Toyoda refused to give EV development top priority, claiming that battery-powered vehicles were too complicated and unpopular with consumers. Instead, under his leadership the company made significant investments in hybrid and hydrogen drivetrains. [Mar 3, 2024] People like hybrids, as sales figures clearly show: Customer reception to Ford hybrid vehicles continues to accelerate, with U.S. sales reaching 17,997 in April, 2024, a 60 percent improvement from the same month a year ago and a new monthly record. CEOs need to be in sync with the consumers, not elite politicians and entertainers.

[@andrewkiyko7413]

The fact that Toyota performs quite well gives me some hope for the future. At least some of these multibillion-dollar corporations don't lose the grasp on what customers want.

[@tim3172]

You realize that *literally* ever manufacturer of vehicles sold in the west went "woke" several decades ago, right? Ford, GM, and Stellantis all succumbed to... say it with me... *corporate* *greed*. The least "woke" vehicles are struggling the worst. The 80, 90, 100k+ F250s and 140K+ F350s that guzzle fuel? They're sitting on lots. The Jeep Wrangler is causing Jeep to HEMMORAGE money. It's not just the "woke" 4xe. It's every Wrangler. Ditto all body-on-frame Trucks and SUVs above mid-grade or so. They're simply too expensive to be sold in big numbers. Nobody is buying a 60K Wrangler. The hype died (HARD) on the Bronco (also going for 65k+ at one point MSRP and people were paying 80-100K for First Editions)... the Trailhawk... the Grand Cherokee... etc. (NOBODY IS BUYING THE 80K version of the GRAND CHEROKEE L.) My Audi S4 in 2018: $61,690. The same S4 in 2024: (it's exactly the same platform, same options, they moved from the MMI knob to the touch screen): $70,040. My 2021 A4: $46,300 The, again, identical vehicle in 2024: $53,840.00 (it even has the same touch screen.) Now a freaking Golf R costs more than my 2021 A4 when it was $39,995 in 2021. The manufacturers are literally pricing out buyers, making them go an entire model line (or even *BRAND*) down to get the same cost. I know it hurts to admit that it has nothing to do with "woke" (a vague arrangement of concepts that seem to cumulatively mean "empathy" and "foresight"), but legacy automakers are suffering because of *overpriced automobiles* due to *corporate greed*.

[@tim3172]

Also, did you uh... did you see how the hydrogen "investments" worked out for Toyota? "Toyota's Hydrogen Future Is Crumbling As Owners File Lawsuits, Call For Buybacks" People are upset because the hydrogen tank costs $15,000 to replace. Oops...

[@andrewkiyko7413]

@@tim3172 The difference is that they're smart enough not to put all eggs in one basket. Even though they failed with hydrogen, their hybrids are better than ever.

[@perihelion7798]

@@tim3172 Many serious problems with hydrogen power, not the least of which is just how volatile it is - KABOOM!

[@goga.games18]

Why is it so hard for VW to cut off EV investment and use that money to make their cars more reliable, It can easily rival brands like Toyota and Honda. Sure it will take time but time earns reputation.

[@sunnohh]

The worst part of my Porsche is the screen, get those damn things out of cars

[@LogicallyAnswered]

Facts

[@IamdeaththedestroyerofWorlds]

This video has aged very well. You should make a follow up.

[@ecooled93]

Volkswagen's evaluation of $100 billion was due to a short squeeze, not because it was the value of a company. I'm disappointed by lack of research and won't be watching again going forward.

[@lonyo5377]

VW spun out Porsche and paid a massive dividend as well (€10bn), which accounts for that much of the market cap drop, plus they pay out regular dividends on top

[@RoadtripEuropeDashcam]

VW became the most valuable company in the world for a day due to that short squeeze. but the video was referring to VW being the most valuable car maker. two different things.

[@stevenmaginnis1965]

It was Diess who Americanized the VW lineup in the U.S. Not good.

[@ErcanOktay-wm3wu]

Id like to write my bachelor thesis on The Influence of E-Mobility on the german economy (now and in the future). Do you guys think that would be an easy topic to write a bachelor thesis on? It has to be 50 pages i think. Maybe this topic is too complex for a bachelor thesis? Does someone know a good topic for a bachelors thesis (im studying economics and business administration)?

[@thebosscrystal]

No idea how easy it would be but sounds interesting!

[@Yattayatta]

I wrote my bachelor thesis on a single word, but you can go more broad than that. I'd suggest finding a slightly more specific topic though, maybe there is something in E-mobility that you could focus on specifically? With how a thesis is written, you'd be at the 50 page mark before you were done with your definitions at that with.

[@matthewrichardson2533]

I honestly love my mk. 7 Jettta. It's a $2200 zippy car, with a clean interior, hasn't given any problems and the heated seats do wonders for my back and hips after work.

[@Al-Storm]

The eu won't let it fail. It's decent value play right now. They still pump out cars that people buy.

[@mravojedjed]

Well...I'm picking up my new golf 8 today and watching this

[@gavinmarion4550]

I have a golf 8. What do you think of yours?

[@pardhivvarma]

Volkswagen Polo their best car 😍

[@udaysingh9_11]

Of course you're an Indian 🤦🏻

[@shyviking]

Literally shocking how fast VW threw away their credibility in USA (dieselgate) and are about to lose big on the chinese market (No competitive NEVs and ICEs will be dead there in 5-7 years). Losing the two biggest car markets will cost the brand dearly.

[@peterlast3200]

You didn't mention the debt that VW is carrying.

[@BobBaumeister-g8v]

Which dept? That nearly nothing.

[@alanbarnes]

Back in 1980 on holiday in South Africa I hired a Passat for a month.Drove just over 4000kms,excellent car,the automatic choke was a bit iffy but the rest of the car was fine.So sad that VW appear to have lost the plot.

[@jojiczeljko88]

Reliability of VW is now so bad that I wouldn't take it even for free. I remember the time when VW was synonym for quality and reliability 😢

[@thiagolima5232]

the qualyt vw today come back. very nice

[@JDBass36]

It was only a matter of time Over engineered cars that at some point was going to suffer in quality

[@lunarmodule6419]

One thing for sure - cars made in Mexico were really bad. And QA was lacking. In 2000 a friend's brand new car broke down after 1 week! And buttons from the dashboard would fall off. Very bad experience...

[@P2B_JC]

I'm the General Sales Manager of a VW dealership in the US. The biggest problem in VW is that assholes in Europe are making decisions for VW of America. Then, VW of America is making decisions based on government policy changes. Neither of them are listening to the dealers. If they just listened to the dealer groups in the US, we could be a top 3 player year after year.

[@tomdowning9358]

So... the assholes in Europe are doing the exact same thing that US companies do in Europe? Really? Volkswagen is still a German-owned company. No company will listen to dealers ever. You should know how this works.

[@Pamlicojdjdj1487]

Ok be more specific? Seems to me VW Group of America is giving you the product that flies out the door (Atlas, Tiguan, Taos and Jetta/GLI). Trying to understand your complaint

[@P2B_JC]

@Pamlicojdjdj1487 Notice how none of the models you listed are EV? VW was built on being a car for the people. EVs are anything but. VW is losing its heritage with this EV push. I'm not sure if you watched the VW "Heritage" commercial during the Super Bowl, but they're fighting real hard to be progressive while still appealing to an average consumer. They're failing. They need to go back to the basics and stop trying to copy everyone else.

[@madanto2394]

Tell you something about the uk mate that the (as of 2023) Ford Explorer is only available as an ev but in the U.S it's available with a 3l twin turbo.

[@HelloSwiftful]

I'm glad you mention hybrid cars as a way to make a smoother transition. The infrastructure is behind and will take some years.

[@mushbyte]

no views in 41 seconds? bro fell off

[@toxicityuser]

can’t be talking about falling off when you were never on

[@akilelamin]

lol

[@Mojaveknight17]

Be original

[@Tripplesmoke]

oh man if it isnt th3 same cliché comment you typically find on youtube. Almost as good as commenting "first"

[@TasmanianDevil22]

Pre 2010 no problem. Electric handbrakes = stupid and all the gadgets = stupid. Keep it simple. I want a VW Jimny and nice mini defender with minimal electrics and easy to fix. Simple

[@blackbelt2000]

Herbert Diess first mistake was being a musk fanboy

[@LogicallyAnswered]

🙏

[@grahamcastle8189]

A very US centric view, EV adoption is increasing in most markets but not the US. Don't forget the emissions scandal. I've owned numerous VW cars but gave up on them when a timing belt renewal cost £1000, ridiculous.

[@stevenmitchell7830]

Any company that drinks the EV Koolaid will fail, but it does matter how much and how fast they drink. VW got the Diess dose. ☠️

[@oxaile4021]

Nah, Companies not prioritizing EVs will fail.

[@stevenmitchell7830]

@@oxaile4021 so one EV company a week going bankrupt isn't enough proof for you? I doubt neither Tesla nor BYD are actually profitable without very dubious accounting.

[@oxaile4021]

@@stevenmitchell7830 Right, because small startups have never gone bankrupt before? 🤣🤣🤣 Many legacy companies will be added to that list in the not so distant future. Likely starting from Japan.

[@Pamlicojdjdj1487]

@@oxaile4021False

[@Pamlicojdjdj1487]

@@stevenmitchell7830Or heavy government subsidies as is the case of BYD in China. Communist cars for commies

[@15DEAN1995]

teslas valuation looks ridiculous, it doesnt really make sense they make far fewer cars than any other large old school car makers and the company seems more like a meme than a serious company. the only thing i can see giving them an advantage is the self driving technology because im prety sure most cars in their price range, have the cameras, screens and roughly equivalent performance.

[@Easynata]

Sry, but your video shows, that you clearly missed business class - accounting 101. Only bc vw and bmw are selling cars, that does not necessarily make them comparable as you do it. You have to take in account, that VW is more a bank that is producing cars, than Tesla an others are. Also you have to consider regulations and and and and. This is just clickbait

[@Pindapoepert]

I owned a 2018 VW passat. The timing belt snapped after 2 years and one week (one week out of warranty). The engine was completely ruined and had to be replaced, a 9000 euro bill. This is the issue with modern VW, reliability.

[@67daltonknox]

Overpriced, unreliable, expensive to maintain junk?

[@Suburp212]

Too expensive. I want a Jeely. Costs 1/4th and is way better.

[@fahimsami321]

Toyota is number one reliable car brand.

[@Pamlicojdjdj1487]

🤡

[@swegrl]

Speaking about car software.. Toyota's software is like from 2011, their cars are less refined when it comes to driving pleasure. And the Toyota-gate happened just recently, and forced Mr. Toyoda to apologize. All this doesn't prevent Toyota to sell 10+ Mio vehicles per year. Why? :)

[@Pamlicojdjdj1487]

And no too mention the massive Tundra and Lexus GX/LX engine failure recall of 2 weeks ago😂

[@madanto2394]

Toyota's best car-Aston Martin cygnet.

[@oyeaurashu]

Volkswagen is Boeing of car World 😎

[@Pamlicojdjdj1487]

False that would be Toyota with their quality scandals in Japan and massive recalls in the first 6 months of 2024

[@Gor_Bin]

VW is a North-German Brand. North Germany is politically left. Meaning: People don't wanna perform and expect the governemnt to think for them. Also Unions are strong and the workers don't have the same work ethic as in southern Germany. (Yes not everyone, but on average!) This even starts with the schools in northern germany beeing a lot easier than in southern germany leading to less educated high school graduates. In addition VW is also mostly owned by the State of Lower Saxony where the Left and Green Party is very strong. VW is finished. It will be a slow demise into irrelevance.