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Volkswagen has launched its flagship model, the Phaeton, in India at the 2010 Auto Expo. The Phaeton will come priced at Rs 75 lakh, ex-showroom, New Delhi. Volkswagen has declared that the Phaeton is targetted at people who want luxury cars, but would prefer something not too flashy, and hence would be attracted to the Phaeton's understated elegance.
The Phaeton comes powered by a 3.6-litre V6 FSI petrol engine, which is the only engine available on sale right now.
As of now the Phaeton will only be available in the metros, however VW plans to have it in sale at 40 cities in the country soon.
The Phaeton is built in the Volkswagen 'Glass Factory' at Dresden. The car is completely hand built, and customers are allowed to go watch the process of car building, and even be a part of it, if they so wish. VW has said that they will allow such options for Indian customers as well.
There are already 10 units of the Phaeton in the Indian market, having been directly imported into the country.
VW company officials stated that they have so far applied a top-down strategy in the Indian market. Thus, they started with models like the Passat , Jetta, Touareg, Beetle and Phaeton, before finally getting the much awaited Polo into showrooms. The Polo goes on sale in India in March 2010.
Neeraj Garg, managing director, Volkswagen Passenger Cars revealed Volkswagen's belief in technology as vital in maintaining the DNA of VW cars. "Technology is the key factor at Volkswagen. Technology in our flagship models like the Phaeton and Passat are then filtered down to other cars," a move that ensures all Volkswagen's boast similar attributes.
Volkswagen has also declared they have 250 confirmed orders for the Beetle, with a four-month waiting period, while they have 50 confirmed orders for the Touareg. By the end of 2010, the company hopes to have 7 models on sale in India.
VW has sold a total of 3,037 units in the country in 2009, of which 58 were Beetles, 25 Touaregs, 2,342 Jettas and 613 Passats. This is a 95 per cent increase in sales since 2008 when they sold 1,566 cars.
Over the next four to five years, Volkswagen hopes to command an 8 to 9 per cent share in the Indian market.
The company has also revealed that their hatch, the Polo, will be localised 50 per cent. The 1.2-litre, 75 bhp petrol Polo will go on sale in March, while the 1.2-litre, 75 bhp diesel will be available sometime between March and June. The Polo-based sedan will go on sale in the latter half of 2010.
Volkswagen also has trained technicians at all its facilities, and 'flying doctors' who can come and give your car a check up on the move.
Read our reviews of the VW Phaeton right here:
http://www.bsmotoring.com/news/twistphaeton-volkswagen-phaeton/1297/1
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