Polo family risks retirement ahead of 50th anniversary
Volkswagen boss Thomas Schaefer has said there will be no more cars like the Polo. During a conversation with reporters in Los Angeles, the top manager questioned the economic feasibility of developing the Polo family. According to Schaefer, the new environmental standard “Euro-7” will make the cost of small cars unacceptably high: the same Polo can rise in price by five thousand euros or 25 percent at once, which will make the business model unviable.
The Volkswagen boss believes that it will take about two weeks for engineers to study the European Commission document and assess the prospects for improving internal combustion engines. If Schaefer’s pessimistic forecast is confirmed, then investments in the seventh generation Volkswagen Polo will be frozen, and the sixth generation hatchback will be discontinued before the introduction of Euro-7 economy standards in 2025.
At the moment, the base Volkswagen Polo costs less than 20 thousand euros, and the German automaker understands the importance of having “people’s cars” in the range. The ID.1 and ID.2 electric cars can take the place of the Polo, but with the current development of technology, engineers will not be able to lower the price to 20 thousand euros without sacrificing the power reserve.
The Volkswagen Polo family has been produced since 1975, and the current hatchbacks have been in service since 2017 and have been restyled last spring. Outside of Europe, the model is also sold, for example, in Brazil, the five-door replaced the ultra-budget VW Gol.
According to Schaefer, internal combustion engines will be history by 2033 at the latest. The Volkswagen boss doesn’t believe that synthetic-fuel or hydrogen-powered cars can be a real alternative to electric vehicles, but alternative forms of energy need to be developed to minimize the carbon footprint of aircraft and ships.