Phaeton Volkswagen Phaeton Facelift

[Kowalski]

The right car with the wrong badge.

 

[Giannis]

A sensible mileage used Phaethon is one of the best used-car deals you can get!

 

[Rainer271]

The Phaeton is the Rowan Atkinson within the car market.

 

[Rainer271]

Phaeton goes out of production, Transparent Factory to become electromobility showcase

The last Volkswagen Phaeton has rolled off the assembly line at the company's Transparent Factory in Dresden.

The final model was a black Phaeton 4MOTION which was equipped with a 4.2-liter V8 engine that produces 335 horsepower. The fate of the car remains unclear but the Phaeton was originally introduced 14 years ago to help the brand move upmarket. The model failed to catch on with consumers and it was quickly yanked from the United States lineup.

The decision to end Phaeton production is bad news for employees as approximately 400 of them will be reassigned to work at the company's Zwickau plant or other Volkswagen Group locations. This is unfortunate but the company's Board of Management and General Works Council is committed to the continuation of production at the Transparent Factory. As Volkswagen Dresden Works Council Chairman Thomas Aehlig explained, "The production of the highest-quality vehicles should be resumed here under the eyes of customers and visitors in the near future. This is what the workforce and this unique facility deserve."

In the meantime, Volkswagen will use the Transparent Factory to showcase the brand's electromobility and digitalization efforts. Beginning on April 8th, visitors will be invited to "experience the future of mobility at close quarters in a playful, interactive and informative way." Volkswagen declined to elaborate but photos show visitors will be able to sit in a "Drivers-Assistance-Globe" and race cars on the e-Carreratrack.

Source: Worldcarfans

 

[Merc1]

It's about time. This misery has gone on long enough. Brilliant car when introduced, but dated now and was irrelevant from day one.

So in other words VW spent too much money on this factory to shut it down and it's too expensive for anyone to buy it so the workers will just play games until VW can make it relevant again with a new product.

M

 

[Deleted member 25]

Wasn't some Bentley stuff manufactured there ?

 

[sako97]

The pride and joy of Ferdinand Piech is beyond worthless now. I haven't paid attention to the Phaeton in a decade, but after I reading a Jalopnik article I was curious.

I remember hearing and reading all the fuss about the $1.3B R&D investment, the laboratory-clean Dresden factory, the über fancy
Campagnolo boot hinges, and the overly complex climate system.

Now, for less than $6,000 you can buy a 2006 Phaeton V8 with a rare (or rare, rare?...since no one bought one) 4 place seating. There are more selling for even less.

The interior looks to have held up quite well. Still wouldn't touch it with a 10 foot pole, which is why it's worthless in the first place. Yet Bentley is silently getting away with robbery selling new Flying Spurs for $250k+.

http://jalopnik.com/the-pain-and-pleasure-of-briefly-owning-a-used-w12-vw-p-1797035069
2006 Volkswagen Phaeton AWD V8 4dr Sedan w/4 Seats In Posen IL - Your Choice Autos

 

[Centurion]

^^
It's a fantastic article. I have a desire to own a Phaeton but the unexpected(more like expected) repair bills would bankrupt me. The later models have a nicely updated interior:

 

[Star&Car]

The car still looks fresh on the road,the average joe would never know it's a car from 10+years ago.

 

[klier]

The car still looks fresh on the road,the average joe would never know it's a car from 10+years ago.

The average Joe, sure. But then again, what do they know?

 

[Giannis]

It's an amazing car, but it's the same story with any vehicle of this segment that you decided to buy as a 10 years old used car. You need to be able to fix many issues alone, or you'll go bankrupt. Still, a brilliant car!

 

[klier]

Still, a brilliant car!

The latest versions do look good I have to say. Old-ish, but nice and clean. The difference in interior is night and day between @sako97's and @Centurion's pics

 

[SCOTT27]

The right car with the wrong badge.

Exactly. Born out of frustration because of Mercedes bringing the-then revolutionary A-Klasse to the Golf segment.
Ferdinand Piech decided to take VW to the S-Klasse. But he did not realise brand cachet is far more illustrious than having an impeccable product. Which we can agree Phaeton was impeccably engineered, some would agree even more than the S-Klasse as Mercedes were at that time in a less than cosy relationship with Daimler Chrysler. But the badge and the fact it looked similar to a super sized Passat gave it a permanent handicap.
They even had a specialised factory and exclusive concierge delivery service. In the end like most automotive anomalies it found a calling in China.
Phaeton was not the only mishap if you can remember the Passat W8?
I recently seen two. One was in a scrap yard( too complex or too expensive to keep on the road) and one for sale for about. €2,500.

 

[Serpens]

Exactly. Born out of frustration because of Mercedes bringing the-then revolutionary A-Klasse to the Golf segment.
Ferdinand Piech decided to take VW to the S-Klasse. But he did not realise brand cachet is far more illustrious than having an impeccable product. Which we can agree Phaeton was impeccably engineered, some would agree even more than the S-Klasse as Mercedes were at that time in a less than cosy relationship with Daimler Chrysler. But the badge and the fact it looked similar to a super sized Passat gave it a permanent handicap.
They even had a specialised factory and exclusive concierge delivery service. In the end like most automotive anomalies it found a calling in China.
Phaeton was not the only mishap if you can remember the Passat W8?
I recently seen two. One was in a scrap yard( too complex or too expensive to keep on the road) and one for sale for about. €2,500.

The Phaeton, Touareg V10 (at least in the U.S.), and Passat W8 were in the same boat- upmarket attempts marred by a high price, the aforementioned commoner's badge, and poor reliability.