Insufficient Demand Affects Production At Volkswagen Zwickau Plant
Insufficient Demand Affects Production At Volkswagen Zwickau Plant
The Volkswagen Group has a demand problem for its all-electric cars in Europe, which soon might affect its main factory in Zwickau, Germany.
German media reports on upcoming employment reduction.
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VW has utterly failed to deliver EVs people actually want to buy. They are expensive, have lower quality interiors compared to their combustion brethren, lag behind in infotainment/connectivity compared to other EVs (especially Chinese ones, which is one market VW was betting heavily on) and in terms of range and charging speed they're also behind their competitors. At least here in Germany it seems like they padded their order books with deliveries to car sharing, rental and taxi companies, looking at how many ID3s and ID4s are present there. It wouldn't surprise me if they offered massive discounts in hopes of generating demand from private buyers, but that didn't work out and the fleet market is simply saturated now.
I’m calling bullshit on this “lower quality” trope - I have an ID.3 for 2.5 years now, and it’s a solid, reliable car. It’s plastics are heavy-duty and hard-wearing and not prone to deforming or scratching up. The soft areas are comfortable and supportive. The car has been reliable and with software update 3.2, the UI is responsive and well-featured.
I chose it and cancelled my model 3 order because I wanted reliability first and foremost, and also it was going to be a stretch financially, and I didn’t want to suffer wild repair costs.
My ID has been dead-easy to live with, and except for a failed main screen (repaired the day later - it was a pandemic car) it’s been solid. Panels align perfectly, no worries about paint and “micro scratches”, and the one repair I did need (after a bad sudden pothole on a control arm) cost less than €180 for replacing both arms, labor included. Try that at Tesla.
Chinese cars - don’t get me started. Go flex the metal on the lift gate of an Ora Funky Cat and see how insubstantial and thin it is. Or read some reviews on CarNewsChina on the lower-end car segments you champion…rocklike suspensions and old-fashioned build methods—plus much slower charging curves.
ID.3 s and 4s are EVERYWHERE here in the Netherlands, Germany, and even back in my old home base of Colorado in the US, usually a bellwether state. Maybe car sharing isn’t legit to you, but they’re reliable and tough enough for business, and they’re out on the streets. Chinese stuff? Not so much. Maybe they should see if they can sell them to a driving school - if those will pass the test.