Re: Audi moving upmarket?

[aspeer@mail.utexas.edu (Andrew J. Speer)]

>>>OH good.  (gawd).  OH great.  (heavens).  JUST what Audi needs.  
>>>Didn't they JUST get a toe-hold established in the US by REDUCING 
>>>prices?  Didn't they note Mazda DROPPING their plan for a premium car 
>>>division because the market was saturated??????????????????
>

This is what happens to me for dropping loaded words on the unsuspecting public.
Yes, I did say mr. Piech has stated he wishes to move both Audi and VW
up-market.  I did NOT mean to imply, however, that Audi planned to raise
prices on their cars.  I think Audi's near immolation in the U.S. market has
innoculated them against any such notion.  Going up-market implies Audi's
intent to add more upper crust vehicles to their lineup, i.e. read the A7,
A8, and possible A9 with the rumored W12 engine.  VW would do the same
through the new Passat, and rumored new V8 based on the VR6.  By the same
standard, Audi has also moved down-market through the A3, and decontented
versions of the A4.  The whole notion is to present different markets with
different mixes of the vehicles, since in some places VW carries more
cachet.  So in those places A3s and decontented A4s would be the "entry
level" luxury vehicles, and V8 Passats would be status "halo" vehicles.
This sounds weird, but it is actually how some third world countries
perceive things, and where fancier A4s, A6s and A8s are out of reach of
everyone but an extremely small minority.

Sorry about the confusion.

Andrew.