Considering the timing of this VW PR release and our recent post about a potential nomenclature for Ford high-performance vehicles, I guess someone felt a poke in the side, though obviously this has been in the works a long time. Volkswagen R GmbH will now own the R nomenclature. RenaultSport owns RS in Europe, and GM has used it in the US, though I suspect RS is so commonly applied that no one company can control it.
I still hold that Ford needs a global nomenclature for high-performance cars rather than a mish-mash of compromised regional terms (ST in Europe, SVT in the US), and wonder why they have not been able to figure one out. As stated at the beginning of our post about Ford Racing and the R Cars, R was used for the sake of argument–and certain folks at Ford saw the first draft nearly two years ago. We’ll see what Jost Capito and the marketing mavens of Dearborn cook up. Hopefully something better than the antiseptic Opel OPC. The OPC cars are handsome enough, but not sure the name has a magic ring to it.
Our suggested means of incorporating the mythic and partially forgotten past as engine branding still works, as does two letter colors, though a friend argued that Ford is not sophisticated enough to grasp what was offered.
BEGINS:
Wolfsburg, Germany – March 16, 2010 — The Volkswagen R GmbH will be the specialist for sporty exclusive models from Volkswagen in the future. Volkswagen AG has bundled the responsibilities and competencies for development, implementations and sales of individualised vehicle offers into Volkswagen R GmbH. For example, its portfolio includes the two new top models, the Scirocco R und the Golf R as well as the dynamic R Line design packages and luxurious Volkswagen Exclusive items.
“Our vehicles contribute to the emotionalisation and growth of Volkswagen brand,” explained Ulrich Riestenpatt gt. Richter, General Manager of Volkswagen R GmbH.
The company’s name, Volkswagen R GmbH, responds to the increased global demand for individualised vehicles with contemporary sportiness and exclusivity. The sporty positioning will be reflected more intensely in the programme of Volkswagen R in the mid and long term. The company has its headquarters in Warmenau near Wolfsburg, Germany. Volkswagen R GmbH employs a staff of more than 350.
You must log in to post a comment.