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HomeVolkswagen Group

Volkswagen Group

Fake Design

1958 Studebaker: Honesty is the best policy

September 25, 2020 Steve 4

If you went by the above photo alone, you would get a misleading impression of the 1958 Studebaker. Yes, the colors are grossly exaggerated, but an even bigger problem is that the photo only shows […]

Design Notes

Audi R8 : More beast than sports car

November 1, 2019 Steve 2

(EXPANDED 12/14/2022) An Audi R8 in the wild is an eye-opening event. Everything about the car is over-amped, from the child-eating grille to the showy display of V10 power just beneath the rear window. The […]

Volkswagen's second-generation "new" Beetle
Current Events

What died when the VW Beetle ended production?

August 1, 2019 Steve 0

Paul A. Eistenstein’s (2019) story about the end of production for the Volkswagen Beetle makes an odd editorial decision. He treats the Beetle as a unified product line that stretches all the way back to […]

2019 Lexus LC500
Satire

2019 auto design: One step closer to machine guns?

December 1, 2018 Steve 1

This year’s Seattle auto show should have been held during Halloween rather than the second week of November. That’s because the auto industry’s latest wares were a frightful bunch. On the inside they offered the […]

2018 Toyota Camry
Data Dive

Is the mid-sized sedan in a ‘breathtaking’ decline?

July 13, 2018 Steve 0

A Ford executive recently told Automotive News that the Fusion sedan’s forthcoming discontinuance was the result of a “breathtaking” decline in the mid-sized sedan segment that has “accelerated over the past couple years” (Martinez, 2018). In […]

Volkswagen "new" Beetle has a flower vase
Current Events

Is brand management really an automaker’s No. 1 priority?

July 4, 2018 Steve 0

In his rousing introduction to Auto Extremist’s annual “Brand Image Meter,” Peter DeLorenzo (2018) argues that “image wrangling is now the Number 1 priority in this business.” The reason is that a “democratization of technology […]

Drive-by musings
Drive-By Musings

2019 Bentley: Did it really need a restyling?

May 20, 2018 Steve 0

The third-generation Bentley Continental GT is making its rounds in the American car magazines. For example, a story in Car and Driver (Lorio, 2018) has a large photo gallery that shows how styling changes are […]

Citroen 2CV
Design Notes

Citroen 2CV driver asks for a little patience

May 3, 2018 Steve 2

A while back we batted around the question of what would a modern simple car look like? The Volkswagen Beetle was used as a point of comparison,  but I suppose a Citroen 2CV could have also […]

Current Events

Should VW’s design chief fear civilization’s end?

July 27, 2014 Steve 1

(UPDATED 12/15/2022) Volkswagen Group’s global design chief Walter de Silva is worried that optimizing aerodynamics in order to meet tightening emissions standards could hurt aesthetics and branding. In an Automotive News question-and-answer piece, he complained […]

Readings

Standard Catalog of Volkswagen, 1946-2004

April 24, 2013 Steve 0

The focus of this book series is product information, organized by year. U.S. sales figures are provided, but often aren’t broken out by model. Standard Catalog of Volkswagen, 1946-2004 John Gunnell; 2004 KP Books, Iola, WI “The […]

Posts pagination

« 1 … 3 4
  • 1965 Studebaker Cruiser proposal
    Car Life speculates about why Studebaker shut down its South Bend plant
    July 17, 2026 8
  • 1956 Lincoln
    The 1956 Lincoln’s styling proved to be a one-year wonder
    July 17, 2026 18
  • 1975 Mercedes-Benz 450 SL
    1975 Mercedes-Benz 450 SL lacked the taut brilliance of its predecessor
    July 14, 2026 6
  • 1988 Oldsmobile Toronado
    Did GM go too far in downsizing the 1986 Riviera, Toronado and Eldorado?
    July 10, 2026 16
  • J. 'Kelly' Flory Jr.
    J. ‘Kelly’ Flory Jr.’s American Cars series is pricey but valuable
    July 10, 2026 4
  • 1968 Pontiac Firebird green convertible
    1967-72 Pontiac Firebird shows limits of ad illustrations
    July 7, 2026 10
  • Miscellaneous ramblings about being on the road
    June 25, 2026 5
  • Internet problems reminded me of U.S. automakers in the 1970s
    May 2, 2026 1
  • 1956 Buick hood scoop
    Readers brainstorm ideas for future Indie Auto stories
    October 14, 2022 141
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