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Saw one for the first time on Monday. Looked more than rather nice. The best looking of all the big luxo-barges?
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But it looks like a Passat from anything other than close-up.
Nothing against the Passat, mind, unless I was asked to pay £60k for it.
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But it looks like a Passat from anything other than close-up.
To paraphrase the immortal words of Father Ted,
"The car near you is a Passat, the other car is a Phaeton but it is far away... "
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I always saw the Phaeton as more akin to a fine clock or piece of handmade furniture than a glitzy exec carrier - it looks simple, functional and relatively generic from the outside but it's when you start to look a bit closer and take in the details that the real beauty of it becomes clear. For my money (which is incidentally a lot less than the asking price..)it's a masterpiece of engineering with the sort of design ethic that most manufacturers can only dream of. Shame I'll never get the chance to drive one, but it's a nice thought :)
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"Shame I'll never get the chance to drive one, but it's a nice thought :)"
In 3 years time they will be under £25,000 secondhand. In six under £10,000.
Lots of chances:
madf
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The most I've ever had to spend on a car was £800, so it'll have to be a few years down the road from that.. ;)
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£800 could buy you two Renault Safrannes and you'd be able to stretch to a Peugeot 607 next year.
Never underestimate the power of depreciation when a company known for small cars builds a big one!
Gareth
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How true - big cars usually last longer too, so it's a win-win situation. What's your forecast for the Kia Magentis (a decent car, IMHO)?
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Safrane - A somewhat flaky piece from the French manufacturer.
Re the Phaeton - VW did what Toyota undertook with the original Lexus that came out in 1989.
They looked at every luxury car manufacturers' products, improved on every aspect both visually and hidden from view, and called it the Phaeton.
The result is a fantastic model range.
The hard task is getting Mercedes, BMW etc owners to switch to the VW brand and the perceived lack of image.
I'm a VW man myself so am content with the superb build quality and bullet-proof reliability of the two Jettas and now a Bora I've had over the last 12 years.
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But a Lexus isn't badged as a Toyota. VW tried the "halo" effect, but this normally works the other way round. You build a class-leading large saloon then you make the other models look like it (BMW, Mercedes). You don't build one that looks like your "company car".
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Saw one of these a few weeks ago coming up fast in my rear view mirror - thought is was a Passat at first, until it shot past me and I saw it was 5 litre V10! A very nice looking car IMO.
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It will go the way of Lexus 400 and Audi A8s.
Unobtainanble second hand except through the dealer network for 2-4 years after launch.
Then after the first facelift, available anywhere.
Now when 7 years old or more, worth buying a good one: if you can afford to run them.
Personally I prefer small cars but that's another thread:-)
madf
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thought is was a Passat at first,
As I said....
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Beleive it or not, VW have sold 300 phaetons in 3 months !!!
Where ?
Taiwan !!!
As stated in todays Singapore Straits Times
Well one of best markets for the Lancia Thema was Taiwan, I believe !
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You should see the fancy commercials we get in Asia for this thing.
Filipino reaction: yeah but it's just a Volkswagen, no class, who would spend money on that?
No further questions yer honor.
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Anyone think the tail pipes look like a BMW grille? (Apologies if this has come up before).
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Saw ine on Wednesday creeping along Oxford Street on one of my forced visits to the Smoke. Looked ok to me but would I want one ? Don't think so.
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There is currently an '03 Phaeton W12 with 9k miles advertised on Autotrader for £36995.
The list price of this car was £68000.
That equates to £31,000 depreciation in just over 12 months.
Is this a record?
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No, that will be set when they actually sell the car.
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Phaeton v Audi A8 - why have VW/Audi two similar cars fighting for the same sector of the market?
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Phaeton v Audi A8 - why have VW/Audi two similar cars fighting for the same sector of the market?
In house rivalry.
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>> Phaeton v Audi A8 - why have VW/Audi two similar cars >> fighting for the same sector of the market? >> In house rivalry.
Spot on, in the past this has been actively encouraged; especially among the SEAT/Skoda/VW brands. The current head of VW group sees things differently, but due to the nature of car production they have to live with the decisions of their predecessors for some time.
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I've only seen one, a black one. Attractive, balanced and understated styling - wonder if they'd sell well as VIP cars to government departments etc. I'd rather have a Toareg, personally.
Cheers, SS
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Seen a few but the best was a mule for a four door Bentley Continental a few months ago... Looked okay until you realised the grill was a disguised Bentley's and the tail pipes were straight off a Bentley Continental GT.
Couldn't take a picture because of location.... in Crewe. Fine cars they make there. Could eat your lunch off the factory floor.
Also saw a nice DB9 there and even an MG SVR!
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