Volkswagen is not discontinuing the Routan. We will see how the current management positions the Routan--the van is frequently tied to the departed CEO Stefan Jacoby. However, the Routan's market share is in line with targets set at its introduction. See the article Get It Straight--the Routan Is a Phenomenal Seller on this blog for a discussion why the Routan would not be discontinued because of sales numbers.
Research by Truecar.com indicates that 23.3% of Routan owners are younger than 35. Only the Volkswagen GTI has more owners under 35 in the U.S. at 23.4%. It would appear that Gen Y views the Routan as the best choice if they have to drive a minivan. Once they buy it, they seem to love it, as seen by their entries on blogs and Twitter.
On February 6, 2008, Associated Press reported, in part: "[Volkswagen of America President and CEO Stefan] Jacoby said the minivan market still is approaching 1 million vehicles a year, and Volkswagen would like to capture 3 to 5 per cent of that." Jacoby has since left the company to go to Volvo, but the Routan is still doing what they expected it to do.
PRNewswire published the September and YTD sales figures of the auto-makers who sell in the U.S. From these reports, we glean the following data:
Brand YTD - 9/10
Chrysler 87,493
Dodge 74,954
Honda 79,725
Kia 17,217
Mazda 12,865
Nissan 177 (discontinued)
Toyota 72,131
Volkswagen 12,539
Total 357,101
Volkswagen's market share of van sales is 3.51%, in the range Volkswagen of America was aiming for. This is, by the way, nearly twice their overall market share.
