VW CEO frustrated by Hyundai's new i30 solid fit & finish!

[EnI]

Volkswagen Group CEO, Martin Winterkorn, inspects the new Hyundai i30, and becomes very frustrated finding out the car features more than solid fit & finish.

"It doesn't rattle!", said Winterkorn when inspecting steering adjustment lever. "BMW can't do it. We couldn't do it. It doesn't rattle!"
"We had such a solution, but it was too expensive back then.", one of the VW officials replied.
"Why can they do it!?", hissed frustrated Winterkorn.

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VW in trouble?

Fantastic ad for i30 ... Just excellent! No extra production needed. Hyundai just need to air that on net & TV with subtitles. Better than any produced ad.

 

[Kowalski]

Something tells me that a truckload of new Hyundai i30's will be arriving at the forecourt of a certain "Mr. Negawsklov" in Wolfsburg, and each Hyundai will be taken apart, so "Mr. Negawsklov" and his friends can figure out a telescopic steering that doesn't rattle.

 

[martinbo]

Fascinating! VW's CEO going through a competitor's car with a fine-tooth comb or should that be tape measure? It's not just VW in trouble - it's much of the European mainstream car makers.

Hyundai KIA aren't coming anymore. They're here.

And as if the new i30 didn't pose a meaningful enough threat to Golf - now there's the new KIA Rio with Polo squarely in its sights. What a good looking little hatch! The man-in-all-black is on a march.

 

[SCOTT27]

Fascinating! VW's CEO going through a competitor's car with a fine-tooth comb or should that be tape measure? It's not just VW in trouble - it's much of the European mainstream car makers.

Hyundai KIA aren't coming anymore. They're here.

And as if the new i30 didn't pose a meaningful enough threat to Golf - now there's the new KIA Rio with Polo squarely in its sights. What a good looking little hatch! The man-in-all-black is on a march.

Yes and you think of how Kia and Hyundai are winning customers over in Europe because of their pro-longed warranty which I think it is seven years or so?

VW could never do that and when you think of Bugatti - every wrecked Bugatti is repaired by the manufacturer at a cost to VW. So the next time you see a VW executive look if he has a chill running up an down his spine it's just a Saudi Prince , Son of a Russian Oilgarch or spoiled child has just drifted his Veyron Gran Sport or Supersport into a wall.
But yes you get tape measures , Paint depth diagnostic machines , even netbooks plugged into the cars engine (Toyota copyright IAA 2011) , multiple photography etc even down to old hands and knees for a closer look.
I saw a very thin Chinese man slide under the X6 with a torch and camera once under orders from his manager.

But to get back to the point. Yes the continuing progress of Kia and Hyundai is very much a concern to the mainstream volume European manufacturers.
Of course having a look at the Kia GT Concept showcases that they want to progress further.

 

[Wolfgang]

Hyundai-Kia is also a fuel cell leader. E.g. they plan a limited production run of 1000 starting next year...

autoblog.com

 

[braaf]

Engines, that is their only bug bear at the moment. They can't compete with VW engines. But this is a perfect opportunity for them to join the PSA brigade. Yes?

 

[SCOTT27]

Hopefully some of the Chris Bangle IAA videos make it online. The Geneva ones were intriguing.

But regarding Hyundai and Kia I am pretty sure that before 2020 they can be in top three manufacturers for volume and growth. It is good to see the i30 now with an identity. If you squint when driving behind the previous model it looks like the E87 1er from the rear.
In the meantime I actually sat in the i3 and for a C-segment hatch the quality is very good , reliability is also excellent for Hyundai /Kia and there is that warranty which is of course gives you piece of mind that should anything go wrong. Plus at the IAA, KIA gave you Beds to lie on...


As for Benchmarking? Reithofer and Draeger were seen in the B-Klasse , complete with marketing intern in which the ubiquious clipboard has been replaced by an ipad2. I seen multiple Chinese benchmarkers on the Bugatti Veyron which kind of makes you think of what could happen there? A shrunk facsimile of the Veyron on a c-segment hatch drivetrain gives you goosepimples.... and not in a good way. Also Bugatti make you remove your shoes before you sit in one.

 

[martinbo]

Engines, that is their only bug bear at the moment.

Yes exactly. But that's only for now. When the Gamma 1.6 turbo GDI 4 cyl engine comes on stream then it's game on. After all, the small capacity turbo'd 4 pot is destined to become de rigueur in the very near future for all compact cars - that'll level the playing fields.

 

[jack]

that was a great view behind the curtain
i have enjoyed every second of the clip

 

[PHYBENZ]

Their initial quality isn't bad, but give a Kia or Hyundai time behind the wheel and they wear faster or worse than other cars. Check out insideline's experience with the Equus leather looking bad after 20,000 miles compared to the 5 series, or the KIA having all sorts of glitches. They're not there, but def doesn't mean they won't be.

 

[Human]

All I wanna say is this: Go and look up my past posts, when i made a big song and dance time and again about the Koreans none of you cared to really comment or get involved

Now the writings on the wall and all I can ad is I told you so!

In the end I am VERY excited about this GREAT post of the year IMO from EnI, thanks mate you are my hero!
About time the German motor industry arrogance gets the boot. The Germans needs to wake up and open their eyes to the reality that's called the "invasion"
We the fanatics, owners and enthusiast HAVE TO pay premium to own a 'badge' from a "premium" German OEM. And frankley on entry level offerings it's a rip-off (e.g. X1 interior plastics and build quality is shit to say the least!) wake up little Suzie, wake-up!

Scotty, go to Reithofer and tell him I am a disappointed customer and as said in previous post about new Korean offerings "mark my words" Now the dark sides Mr. Winterkorn did it for me, gladly so because I am that one in a billion shouting from the corner and nobody gives a F. Him, now he has authority

Hope VAG, it's honesty and 62 Billion investment will rub down on BMW and Mercedes-Benz on entry level offerings (o yes that includes the hard, nasty plastics 'premium' MINI brand)

What a great weekend this turned out to be!

 

[Human]

Hopefully some of the Chris Bangle IAA videos make it online. The Geneva ones were intriguing.

But regarding Hyundai and Kia I am pretty sure that before 2020 they can be in top three manufacturers for volume and growth. It is good to see the i30 now with an identity. If you squint when driving behind the previous model it looks like the E87 1er from the rear.
In the meantime I actually sat in the i3 and for a C-segment hatch the quality is very good , reliability is also excellent for Hyundai /Kia and there is that warranty which is of course gives you piece of mind that should anything go wrong. Plus at the IAA, KIA gave you Beds to lie on...


As for Benchmarking? Reithofer and Draeger were seen in the B-Klasse , complete with marketing intern in which the ubiquious clipboard has been replaced by an ipad2. I seen multiple Chinese benchmarkers on the Bugatti Veyron which kind of makes you think of what could happen there? A shrunk facsimile of the Veyron on a c-segment hatch drivetrain gives you goosepimples.... and not in a good way. Also Bugatti make you remove your shoes before you sit in one.

You're all funny Hope Hyundai/KIA offers you a job when they take over BMW Group

Now that's funny! LOL

 

[Merc1]

Makes you wonder what would have happened if Daimler had kept their alliance with Hyundai.


M

 

[Human]

Fascinating! VW's CEO going through a competitor's car with a fine-tooth comb or should that be tape measure? It's not just VW in trouble - it's much of the European mainstream car makers.

Hyundai KIA aren't coming anymore. They're here.

And as if the new i30 didn't pose a meaningful enough threat to Golf - now there's the new KIA Rio with Polo squarely in its sights. What a good looking little hatch! The man-in-all-black is on a march.

And you can take that to the Bundesbank

 

[Guibo]

This video is so remarkable (incredible?) on a couple of levels. First, it almost seems like a guerilla advertisement for Hyundai. Is Winterkorn trying to sell Hyundais or he is selling VWs? Maybe he's trying to boost their image before taking them over. This kind of easily spread medium stands out far more than any TV commercial or print ad, to me anyway.
Secondly, it's not the usual nameless engineers we've heard of benchmarking other cars at auto shows. It's none other than the CEO. Imagine Bill Gates attending a major consumer electronics show, fondling/measuring an iPod and proclaiming "No wonder nobody buys the Zune!" Really does show Winterkorn to be a real hands-on kind of guy, directing the man next to him on how to use the tape measure. And he's apparently candid enough to admit his own products' shortcomings.

 

[Cashmere]

..........and on that bombshell!

 

[Deleted member 25]

Excuse my ignorance but how does a steering rattles ?

 

[Top Secret]

Secondly, it's not the usual nameless engineers we've heard of benchmarking other cars at auto shows. It's none other than the CEO. Imagine Bill Gates attending a major consumer electronics show, fondling/measuring an iPod and proclaiming "No wonder nobody buys the Zune!" Really does show Winterkorn to be a real hands-on kind of guy, directing the man next to him on how to use the tape measure. And he's apparently candid enough to admit his own products' shortcomings.

That's the first thing that came to my mind when watching this video. It's great to see a 'suit', so high up in the corporate ladder, taking such a proactive approach to his products.

 

[Cashmere]

Excuse my ignorance but how does a steering rattles ?

haha, at first I was thinking the same thing, from another translation below the YT video

He is appreciating the solid feel and sounding of the mechnanism to change the steering wheel. he says something like "no weird sound...bmw can't do it, we can't do it..why can they?!"

 

[Deleted member 25]

haha now i get the picture, btw is that de meo with him ? He left Fiat ?