Mach 18 has come nine years early as the VW Group adds Suzuki in its portfolio (as a strategic partner) to go top of the heap ahead of Toyota. Adil Jal Darukhanawala has the gen on the action plus the backgrounder on this unique new entity destined for global leadership.
Volkswagen AG has an all new reason to party and no, it is not just its successful agreement to form a new exciting partnership with Japanese small car maker Suzuki but the fact that this new deal will enable it to cut out nine years from its avowed Mach 18 programme for world domination! ZigWheels.com had, as far back as August 2008 informed about VW AG's Mach 18 programme which would, by 2018, see the German car maker top them all - in terms of cars produced and sold, in terms of outright profitability, in terms of market capitalization and also in terms of having the most comprehensive automotive solution across price points and geographical reach.
Today with Volkswagen AG picking up a 19.9 per cent stake in Suzuki, the group already has a cumulative sales figure to dethrone the present world no. 1 car maker Toyota. Japanese giant Toyota with sales of 6.4 million units in the first ten months of calendar 2009 would end up being dethroned by the VW Group which would add Suzuki's 1.9 million units to its 5.3 million units to end up top of the automotive standings. And, given the fact that among all the large automotive giants, only the VW Group made major profits in these tough economic times, the portents for growth from the expanded VW portfolio of brands will be even more encouraging. In fact, this new deal would clearly mean a very compelling reason from both to offer a range of small cars, especially in emerging markets which would marry Suzuki's small car expertise with the VW Group?s technological strengths in lowering emissions.
Ever since we heard the buzz about an impending Suzuki-Volkswagen tie-up on the eve of this year's Frankfurt Motor Show, it was clear that this match could be a dynamic game changer in the automotive world. Today the buzz has turned into fact when the two firms signed an MoU to establish a long-term partnership which can not only help both OEMs in their avowed pursuit but also have major repercussions in the way the global automotive pecking order is concerned.
As regard the two partners themselves, there is quite optimism underlining this move. For one, Suzuki needed to have a large partner to take care of development costs towards new technology as ever tightening legislation demanded that aspect. Having lost GM as a stake holding partner also helped Suzuki scour the globe for a technologically proficient and financially sound partner who could help give it the right impetus to focus on its core small car technology. Further Osamu Suzuki who yet runs his eponymous family firm needed to firm up its future and the tie-up with Volkswagen should be the best move he has ever made in such trying times.
No comments:
Post a Comment