VW Golf on the brink of extinction: focus now solely on electric cars?

With the introduction of the VW Golf compact class passenger car models in 1974, Volkswagen had created a true classic that still marks one of the most built cars in the world. With the VW Golf 8, however, the series could be laid to rest, as Thomas Schäfer, head of the Volkswagen brand, has now hinted in an interview with Welt am Sonntag.

VW Golf before the end?

After the eighth model generation of the VW Golf launched in December 2019, it could be the end. At least, this is what VW brand boss Thomas Schäfer’s statement from an interview with the Welt am Sonntag suggests. There might not be a VW Golf 9 anymore.

While most of the talk has focused on the Volkswagen Group’s electric future, such as the VW ID. Buzz or the recently unveiled “electric Passat” VW ID. Aero focused, they also came to talk about the VW Golf and a possible ninth model generation.

Even at the launch of the Golf VIII, the future of the range was uncertain. Against the backdrop of the boom in electric cars, the VW Group would have to look at “whether it is worthwhile to develop a new vehicle that will no longer last the full seven or eight years,” Schäfer said in the interview.

VW future all-electric?

The Golf is still a very important car for Volkswagen, but they are very vague about its future. And yet: a clear commitment looks different. Especially since the sales figures for the current VW Golf 8 have recently declined significantly. As Auto Motor und Sport reports, the current Golf was no longer at the top of the new registration statistics at the end of 2021, and this was the first time in decades.

Currently, Volkswagen is still working on a facelift of the VW Golf 8, which is expected to launch in 2023, he said. “With new materials and improved software,” according to Schäfer. Then, he said, the company wants to look at how the internal combustion engine business develops over the course of the decade.

Whether there will be a Golf 9 or the VW Golf Aus is sealed, is not yet decided. We will know more in twelve months, Schäfer continues. However, the headwind is not abating. In January 2021, the current model was affected by a major recall, in which 56,000 control units had to be replaced in the Golf VIII.

On the other hand, e-cars are not immune to this either. Just recently, production of the ID.Buzz had to be halted due to battery faults, but was restarted shortly after.

The ADAC also found in an extensive test that significant savings were apparently being made in the quality of new cars. The quality when changing the VW Golf from the seventh to the eighth generation had dropped significantly, the automobile club said.

While Volkswagen’s own electric car line is becoming more broadly positioned and the group’s brands Audi, Skoda or Seat are also launching more and more electric cars, the VW Golf’s demise is considered as good as sealed. Even if a clear and definitive statement has not yet been made in this regard.