Automotive News - February 11, 2008 - (Page 62) 62 • FEBRUARY 11, 2008 VW may return Phaeton to U.S. with diesel Diana T. Kurylko dkurylko@crain.com Volkswagen Group of America is considering a luxury vehicle as its technical and environmental flagship, as well as a family of small cars, CEO Stefan Jacoby says. On the high end, that could mean combining the features of a Phaeton-like sedan with VW’s turbodiesel technology, Jacoby says. “For Volkswagen to be a bigger thing, we must offer a broader range of vehicles to meet the needs and wants of a diverse American customer universe,” he says. Jacoby is leading the charge to turn VW around with vehicles more suitable for U.S. buyers. VW has an ambitious plan to increase sales to 800,000 units by 2018. Last year, it sold 230,572 vehicles in the United States. Jacoby didn’t provide details about the flagship. But he and other VW executives have hinted at returning the ill-fated Phaeton luxury car to the United States in a different guise — without many luxury features and only in the shorter wheelbase. The smaller Phaeton could premiere in several years when the range is redesigned. A source said VW would not bring back the current-generation Phaeton. The Phaeton was yanked out of the United States in 2006 because of slow sales that even incentives as high as $10,000 did not revive. The only Phaeton model sold in the United States was a $70,000-plus, long-wheelbase version. A shorter, cheaper model with an optional diesel engine is available in Europe. VW brought VW’s Stefan Jacoby shows the space up! blue mini-minivan to California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger in November at the Los Angeles auto show. only the most expensive Phaeton, as well as the high-priced Touareg SUV, here to try to elevate the brand into the ranks of German premium players. Those plans failed. Although the Touareg is still on sale here, its U.S. sales have dwindled to 8,812 in 2007, far below VW expectations. Jacoby says the Touareg and the coupelike Passat CC luxury sedan will be part of the brand’s lineup of premium vehicles. The CC will be priced below $27,000, says Jacoby. VW’s small-car possibilities center on the up! concept family. VW has shown versions of the up! at the Frankfurt, Tokyo and Los Angeles auto shows and is deciding whether to launch up! vehicles in the United States. German executives say the larger-wheelbase space up! blue at Los Angeles is the likely size for the United States. The space up! blue is a rear-wheel-drive miniminivan with a length of 144.9 inches — still considerably shorter than the old Microbus. VW has hinted that a diesel version could be on sale here in two to three years. c McCurdy: Automakers get mileage from mpg law Harry Stoffer hstoffer@crain.com WASHINGTON — Top auto industry lobbyist Dave McCurdy makes this prediction: The next president will be reluctant to cede authority to states for climate-change controls, whatever he or she has said on the campaign trail. So, McCurdy says, the industry still has reason to hope that states will not be able to enforce their own vehicle greenhouse gas rules, even if a proponent of state rules wins the White House this year. The industry warns that state-bystate rules on vehicle emissions would create market chaos. Late last year, the EPA denied California a waiver from the federal Clean Air Act that would have allowed the state to enforce its rules. Under another president, though, the EPA could grant the waiver. U.S. Sens. Hillary Clinton, D-N.Y., and Barack Obama, D-Ill., their party’s presidential front-runners, support the waiver. Sen. John McCain of Arizona, leading the Republican field, also says he supports California-style greenhouse gas rules. But McCurdy, president of the Alliance of Automobile Manufacturers, said such an approach is “counterintuitive.” “Why would the president of the United States want individual states setting completely different standards from what their administration is supposed to do?” McCurdy told Automotive News. What about campaign promises made in key states such as California? McCurdy was dismissive: “A lot of promises get made in campaigns.” McCurdy knows how a politician’s year,” McCurdy said. He credits the alliance’s member companies, staff and friends in the industry. Although enactment of the energy law was a landmark event, McCurdy said automakers are not resting. Their executives and engineers are preparing to meet the new standards, which are to be phased in during the 2011-20 model years. The fleetwide average is to reach 35 mpg by 2020. In 2008, the alliance wants Congress to pass a vehicle safety bill. Its agenda also includes issues in Washington and in statehouses, McCurdy said. On the record Here are statements by Sens. Hillary Clinton, D-N.Y., and Barack Obama, D-Ill., on the Bush administration’s denial of authority for states to enforce their own greenhouse gas rules for vehicles. Both presidential candidates are co-sponsors of a bill that would reverse the decision. Clinton: “It is outrageous that the Bush administration chose to block the efforts of New York, California and many other states that want to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from vehicles.” Obama: “Effectively tackling global warming demands bold and innovative solutions, and given the failure of this administration to act, California should be allowed to pioneer.” Climate still hot Climate will remain a hot topic, McCurdy predicts. But he said the new energy law will help the auto industry in debates on additional federal controls and state regulation. “What we did proactively put us in a position to rightfully say we have stepped up,” McCurdy said. “We are the only carbon-constrained sector in the economy” — a reference to carbon dioxide, the most common greenhouse gas and a byproduct of burning fuel. “We think it is time for the rest of the economy to step up to the plate,” McCurdy said. The industry also credibly can tell the next president that it should be allowed to meet tougher national standards without having to contend with unrealistic state rules, he added. McCurdy said he encourages industry people to get involved individually in politics, although the alliance legally cannot do so. His favorite presidential candidate, former Virginia Gov. Mark Warner, dropped out before the race got going. c Alliance President Dave McCurdy: “Look how far we came in one year.” mind works. He served seven terms as a Democratic congressman from Oklahoma before he became a consultant, association executive and top-tier lobbyist. Auto industry hopes next president will replay Clinton’s CAFE flexibility Harry Stoffer hstoffer@crain.com Year for the books This month, McCurdy, 57, marks his first anniversary as president of the auto alliance. The group represents Detroit 3, Toyota and six other automakers. Highlighting the past year was federal approval of a 40 percent increase in fuel economy standards by 2020. Reversing decades of industry opposition to higher standards, the alliance finally supported the energy bill with the fuel economy increase. It now declares victory. “Look how far we came in one WASHINGTON — If the next president is friendlier to the auto industry while in office than he or she was during the campaign, it won’t be the first time. In 1992, Democratic nominee Bill Clinton supported a big increase in fuel economy standards, comparable to the 40 percent boost enacted last year. But in meetings before and after the November election, auto executives and UAW officials appealed to Clinton about the industry’s importance to the economy and the challenges it faced, says veteran industry lobbyist Robert Liberatore. During Clinton’s eight years in the White House, the fuel economy standard for cars did not change. The truck standard rose by just 0.3 mpg. Congress froze standards in 1996. Clinton’s administration also tried to be helpful, at least to the Detroit 3, on such issues as currency exchange, trade and government-industry research on advanced vehicle technology, Liberatore says. Liberatore was the top Washington executive for the former Chrysler Corp. He is now Daimler AG’s senior vice president for global external affairs and public policy. Dave McCurdy, president of the Alliance of Automobile Manufacturers, predicts that the next president will understand that governing is far different from campaigning. And again, he adds, the industry has a case to make. “It’s an important part of this economy,” McCurdy says. “I think it needs to be heard.” c
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