LOS ANGELES — Fulfilling the decades-old need of Volkswagen’s U.S. sellers to have a pickup to promote is now within the arms of a 53-year-old native Argentinian. After operating the automaker’s North America operations for simply over two months, he believes that need is legitimate.
However getting from “we would like” to “now we have” could show a problem for Pablo Di Si, the brand new head of VW’s newly worthwhile North American area — simply because it did for his predecessors.
Di Si believes any new pickup that VW probably brings to market “must be electrified,” however Thomas Schäfer, newly put in international head of the Volkswagen model, says the specifically designed “Rugged SUV” electrical automobile platform being developed for the nascent Scout model will not be in VW’s future, at the least not on this decade.
“In the intervening time, our deal with the lineup does not embody it,” Schäfer, who began his new job three months in the past, informed a small group of journalists at an off-site roundtable dialogue earlier than the Los Angeles Auto Present. “In the intervening time, now we have a transparent lineup all through the second half of this decade. Then once more, within the American market, if you happen to do not play in sure segments, then it’s a must to keep in a sure market share space. However the query of [VW’s new Rugged SUV platform] will not be our precedence in the intervening time.”
Schäfer’s revelation is a blow to supplier hopes to lastly have a pickup of their U.S. lineups after asking for one for many years. And whereas it does not immediately contradict with what former VW of America CEO and now Scout Motors CEO Scott Keogh informed Automotive Information in Might — “This platform may, may present a chance for different group autos. Sure. I wish to be clear on this factor: This platform may positively present a chance for non-Scout autos” — it does imply that it will not be anytime quickly.
But Di Si is undeterred.
“What are the related segments within the U.S.? SUVs and pickups. Are we going to have a pickup? I’ll strive. Do now we have one now? No,” Di Si mentioned. “Proper now, my focus is on strengthening the SUV portfolio. I’ll handle pickups on the proper time, however proper now, I’ve different points to deal with.”
Supplier John Luciano stays affected person as Di Si settles into his new function.
“VW sellers want a truck in our lineup, and Pablo acknowledges that,” mentioned Luciano, proprietor of Avenue VW in Amarillo, Texas, and a former supplier council chairman. “He did great issues in Brazil, so we have to give him time. However we’ll take any truck at this level — fuel, hybrid, electrical. We have to be in these segments to compete with different manufacturers, and Pablo and his group know that.”
Di Si, who headed up VW’s Latin American area earlier than taking up North America on Sept. 1, spoke lovingly in regards to the Tarok, the Latin America-developed compact unibody pickup idea proven on the 2019 New York auto present. The budget-friendly idea took benefit of VW’s international platform technique to primarily use the elements bin to craft a Tiguan-sized all-wheel-drive pickup with a transformable mattress completely suited to surfers in Brazil to hold their boards, Di Si defined.
“That was my child,” Di Si informed Automotive Information. He mentioned in his early conferences with VW sellers within the U.S., the Tarok has come up as a risk for the market. “It is on us. I deal with VW, and now we have an enormous and nice portfolio of SUVs,” he mentioned. “There isn’t any pickup right here — but. However time will inform. I believe now we have the information. I believe the phase is related. And we will play the sport and see the place that form of takes us.”
In further feedback to Automotive Information and different media in attendance, Di Si and Schäfer talked in regards to the automaker’s ramped-up localization push in North America following passage in August of the Inflation Discount Act. Di Si mentioned his experiences in VW’s Latin American area bolstered how important it’s to develop and construct autos within the markets by which they’re offered.
“I consider in native information. In an effort to have a profitable area, whether or not in Latin America or in North America, we are going to localize extra expertise, whether or not it is engineering or digitalization,” Di Si mentioned, recalling his success in getting the VW Nivus developed in Brazil and adopted in different areas. “The German board needs us to do extra right here.”
Di Si pointed to the automaker’s settlement with Canada to safe mineral provides for North American battery and EV manufacturing, and mentioned the automaker’s focus will likely be to localize manufacturing of electrical utilities in North America. Plans for an Atlas-sized three-row EV are within the works — a automobile anticipated to at first accompany then ultimately exchange Atlas manufacturing on the firm’s plant in Chattanooga, Tenn.
Schäfer mentioned VW will doubtless in 2023 overview whether or not to develop manufacturing of its just-launched ID Buzz retro-styled minivan from Europe to North America, the place demand can be sturdy for the trendy EV microbus. However the firm would want to promote “50,000 or 60,000” ID Buzz vans per 12 months in North America to assist localizing manufacturing.
Di Si mentioned he’s focusing his first efforts on making the automaker’s captive finance arm, Volkswagen Credit score, a more in-depth associate with U.S. sellers.
“We’ve got a great financial institution. It must be extra aggressive. If you have a look at different corporations, their value of funding is cheaper,” Di Si mentioned. “I’ve carried out this earlier than. I went by means of the identical journey in Latin America. We’ll be one hundred pc aligned with the sellers, I let you know that proper now.”