Volkswagen is prepared to pull its small cars off sale rather than engineer them to meet costly new Euro 7 emission regulations, which could add as much as €5000 to the cost of a car.
CEO Thomas Schäfer said engineers at the company were currently assessing the regulations, and a decision was expected within the next couple of weeks as to whether or not they would proceed.
“We had a very good plan, where we thought EU7 was an insurmountable hurdle [and therefore would be scrapped] that will accelerate electrification,” Schäfer said at the Los Angeles motor show.
“We planned small electric cars that would come in 2025 between Volkswagen, Skoda and Cupra that would be built in Spain. And that basically replaces the combustion engine in small vehicles like the Polo, as cars become so expensive [with EU7], there is no point carrying on.
“Then two [or] three weeks ago, word got out that EU7 was coming through and it would be on a reasonable level. And we thought, okay, let's go, that might help us transition a little bit [by keeping models like the Polo on sale], it doesn't change the plans, but it helps financially because you can transition a little easier and reinvest at the same time everywhere.
“But last week, another message came through [confirming stricter EU7 guidelines will be implemented] and we're back to square one. It’s even worse...
"It makes no sense to go with very small cars beyond EU7. It will push the price up of the small cars by 3000, 4000 or 5000 pounds or more, then all of a sudden a small vehicle becomes unaffordable.
“We need another two weeks. At the moment, we have engineers evaluating what that means. But if that is true [the expected impact of EU7 on the price of cars], we definitely won't invest anymore and we'll just keep the plan to electrify as quickly as possible.”
When it was put to Schäfer that the European Commission said EU7 would add just €304 to the cost of a car, he said it was a number he didn't recognise, being way out, as cars wouldn't only need to be made into at least mild hybrids to meet stricter emissions regulations but also meet stricter safety legislation that requires technology far in excess of €300.
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So another £5k on *all* cars then,
That £8k Dacia of 2020 will be £25k by 2025.
Well, they'll certainly achieve their aim of pricing the plebs off the road.
Idiots all round. Crazy regulations but also manufacturers who assume I want a CHEAP small car. I like a small car as our second car for local use. But I don't want a cheap one. I'd like a luxury small car. But they'd rather sell 2 tonne SUVs to school run mums whereas they could easily alter the zeitgeist and make small luxury the thing to have. Hopefully electric small cars will have luxury options.
The cynic in me says that what the VW group is really saying is that they only really want to sell expensive cars to, make big profits, and they can more easily get away with that with larger vehicles.
But haven't Audi already said some time ago that they wouldn't be replacing the A1, and that the entry point into Audi ownership would be with a larger model? On the other hand MG have just said that the replacement for the MG3 will still be petrol powered, so there are mixed messages coming across right now.
The cynic in me thinks that VW are really saying that they only want to make bigger, higher profit models, something not as easy to do with smaller vehicles.