Europe's largest automaker faces high hurdle in sluggish U.S. market
It may be one of the world’s most unlikely theme parks, yet each year close to 2 million people pore through Autostadt, the German “auto city” that celebrates the achievement of Europe’s largest automaker, Volkswagen AG.
Until it opened nearly a decade ago, Wolfsburg, less than a two hours' drive from Berlin, wasn’t much of a tourist destination, unless you liked gritty company towns. But these days, many folks are watching what Volkswagen is up to, especially the competition.
With nine brands, soon to become 10 with the planned 2011 takeover of Porsche, VW has set an aggressive goal of surpassing the unexpectedly troubled global leader, Toyota Motor Co. To get there, the “People’s Car” company will need to address the one big obstacle in its path: the U.S. market.
Read Article