Redesigned, reengineered Volkswagen Phaeton coming to U.S. very soon

2011 Volkswagen Phaeton

Update: Volkswagen has just dropped us an e-mail saying that no final decision has been made on bringing the Phaeton to the United States. “While Volkswagen believes there are opportunities for the Phaeton in the U.S., no final decisions have been made,” said Kerry Christopher, Manager of Product Communications at Volkswagen of America. “Of course, we are working closely with our Dresden colleagues to evaluate any opportunities in this market.”

The Volkswagen Phaeton will be coming back to the United States, according to a report by Bloomberg. Originally, when the Phaeton was introduced to the stateside a decade ago, critics said the luxury car would never sell from a company that made cars like the Beetle. While they were right at the time, Volkswagen is keen on taking a second shot.

The move to reintroduce the Phaeton comes as Volkswagen plans to triple market share by 2018 in the United States. A facelifted model of the Phaeton is currently sold in Europe. But the model that will come to the United States will be completely redesigned and reengineered says Juergen Borrmann, director of Volkswagen’s plant in Dresden, Germany.

If Hyundai can make a success out of the Genesis and have enough courage to introduce the Equus, a Mercedes-Benz S-Class and BMW 7-Series competitor, we definitely think the Volkswagen Phaeton can make it the second time around. However, pricing will be a very significant part of its success.

It was recently reported that Volkswagen is working a hybrid variant of the Phaeton as well. No word on whether the hybrid Phaeton will come to our shores.

2011 Volkswagen Phaeton:

– By: Omar Rana

Source: DriveOn