Japanese and Korean auto workers work like robots, ultra efficient and have a level of correctness to their work few other countries can compare to, they also have to because the level of competition for employment in these countries is phenomenal. Manufacturers in these countries also have different values of how a car looks, drives, how easy it is to use and of course how reliable it is.

German auto workers in comparison still have a reasonably high level of these characteristics, however their values are more focused on the drivability, how comfortable is is to be in, how ergonomic it is/ease of use and of course how efficient the drive train is. There is less competition (in numbers) for auto work in Germany than compared to the other countries because there are many times less people there. Plus, it is hard for any manufacturer to do all good from one country, totally different cultures.

As for how well Volkswagen are going to fare in last half of the financial year, my prediction:

they will focus their efforts on small ultra efficient petrol and diesel engines which are a lot cheaper and which have far superior embodied energy/emission levels compared to more expensive and highly polluting hybrid drive trains. Combined with this the inclusion of an industry leading percentage of recycled components they should be in a position to float through the recession to pop out into the new generation of reasonably sustainable cars which don’t need more than one planet to produce cars on.

Affordable sustainable cars for the people is what a good manufacturer should be aiming for and a little birdie told me that the dub will be climbing the plateau sooner than latter if they go with that strategy.

Actually VW has announced a SALES DECLINE of 16% and PROFIT DROP of 74% for the first qtr.

So much for headlines and the real truth……
(Not that this phenonema is unique to CA)

Getreal, not a smart thing to say, especially with ANZAC day coming up.

We keep hearing that the market share of some of the world’s other major manufacturers (ie. GM & FordMoCo.) have plummeted, so it would stand to reason that their percentage of sales are going elsewhere. To VW perhaps….? Call me crazy but I think it’s a pretty logical.

Now, please continue discussing the varying quality of interior plastics…..

Sounds like the first batch of the new Borg Warner 4 speed auto that lso caused massive issues in the EA falcon from late 1989, apparently the they suffered primarily from hub failure?

VW cars maybe at industry standard for parts and electrical failure rates,

All I’m saying is that Japanese cars have superior electrical systems in both quality, complexity and materials over all other manufacturers. And above average failure rates for parts. Yes Toyota’s may die after a while but I’m talking about failures in 6-12 month old cars… Almost bran new.

I know whenever I look for a Quality electronics its always Japan and Korea

Lets not forget how far ahead Japan is in automated robotic manufacturing as well as robots and technology in general ^_^ We want them on our side will otherwise they will come for us, just like those ninja bots tried to take out Robocop in Robocop 3

Must be because I was born in Schleswig-Holstein :)

Do you understand that the cost and complexity of fixing an electrical problem in a civic, Alfa or Peugoet will certainly cost far more than an astra, focus or 3??
Try an oil leak also…
How about a transmission issue?
or perhaps an interior display panel?

Every Jeep we have done a safety certificate on requires a large margin on money, not to mention steering feel and accuracey of a farm tractor, huge fuel thirst and servicing costs yet people think it’s such an image boost to ride around in a wrangler!?
Work that out…
The same applies for people who MUST drive an Audi, VW when an accord Euro or Mazda 6 is thier equal…
I assume you are the latter :)

I too would choose a vehicle based on driving passion than one that pretends to be a white goods on wheels.

The fact is VW’s quality is no better than the industry average and most brands actually equal eachother.