Photo: voanews.com
Still entagled in the nightmare called Dieselgate, German carmaker Volkswagen tries its best to avoid meeting customers face to face at various auto shows around the world.
According to media reports that surfaced last week, the world’s largest automaker, by its own reckoning, will not be attending this year’s Paris Auto Show, scheduled to open on October 4.
As a group, Volkswagen will be present there with some of its gazillion brands. But according to Just Auto, citing VW’s France importer, the core brand of the group will be absent.
The official explanation for the absence is not fear of facing criticism, but rather the need to recover some of the millions lost with the Dieselgate scandal through whatever means possible, including passing on major auto events.
That reasoning doesn’t necessarily stand up to scrutiny. For years, Volkswagen has moved major brand unveilings to China, where it periodically attends specialized events. Of course, China is currently the world’s largest auto market, so this course of action does make sense,
Even for this year the carmaker said it has planned different communications activities to replace the Paris absence. All of which, of course, cost money.
Volkswagen will not be the only brand missing from the Paris show. Until now, there are rumors that Ford, Nissan, and Infiniti will not be presenting anything either.
The Germans plan to skip other shows in the future as well, rotating the brands that will or will not display something. Audi, for instance, will not be present at the 2019 North American International Auto Show in Detroit. It already skipped a presence at the Frankfurt show last year.
Two of the groups brands, Skoda and SEAT, have been somewhat sheltered from the Dieselgate scandal, so their presence seems not to be in jeopardy. Bentley, Bugatti, Lamborghini and Porsche, should they have something to present, will likely make it to Paris.
As a group, Volkswagen will be present there with some of its gazillion brands. But according to Just Auto, citing VW’s France importer, the core brand of the group will be absent.
The official explanation for the absence is not fear of facing criticism, but rather the need to recover some of the millions lost with the Dieselgate scandal through whatever means possible, including passing on major auto events.
That reasoning doesn’t necessarily stand up to scrutiny. For years, Volkswagen has moved major brand unveilings to China, where it periodically attends specialized events. Of course, China is currently the world’s largest auto market, so this course of action does make sense,
Even for this year the carmaker said it has planned different communications activities to replace the Paris absence. All of which, of course, cost money.
Volkswagen will not be the only brand missing from the Paris show. Until now, there are rumors that Ford, Nissan, and Infiniti will not be presenting anything either.
The Germans plan to skip other shows in the future as well, rotating the brands that will or will not display something. Audi, for instance, will not be present at the 2019 North American International Auto Show in Detroit. It already skipped a presence at the Frankfurt show last year.
Two of the groups brands, Skoda and SEAT, have been somewhat sheltered from the Dieselgate scandal, so their presence seems not to be in jeopardy. Bentley, Bugatti, Lamborghini and Porsche, should they have something to present, will likely make it to Paris.
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