Changing Fortunes Within VW

Auto Week

Each year on the eve of the Geneva motor show, the Volkswagen Group stages a preview, showing vehicles that will debut at the show the following day. The event takes place in a large, specially built building in the middle of the city. It is a chance for VW Group execs, board members and brand leaders to get up and talk about their latest projects.

[Photo: Porsche 918 Spyder Hybrid]

Journalists are invited to see the new cars and drink in the prowess of the ever-growing VW empire, not to mention bottles of fine German beer. And it's a pretty impressive lineup--the cars, that is: Audi, Bentley, Lamborghini, Bugatti, Seat, Skoda, Scania, along with Volkswagen, including VW's commercial-truck division. VW has a partnership with Suzuki in Japan that began last year. And, oh, I left one out: Porsche.

After Porsche's failed attempt to take over the VW Group a little more than a year ago--think guppy trying to eat a whale--well, the whale swallowed the guppy, and Porsche is now a VW brand.

At this year's VW Night, the big news was a Porsche concept, the 918. A 500-hp hybrid that veteran rally ace Walter Rohrl said is faster around the Nordschleife than the vaunted Porsche Carerra GT, the 918 rolled on stage and stole the show.

But what struck me was how quickly things change in the auto world. Certainly no one needs to remind Toyota of how one's fortune can turn in a heartbeat. But no more than two years ago, Porsche was held up as the shining example of how to make money in the car business. Porsche was touted as the most profitable car company in the world and its leader, Wendelin Wiedeking, the kind of guy you'd want leading your company--any company, not just an automaker. Wiedeking left Porsche this past July and helped speed up the VW takeover.

But on Monday night in Geneva, Porsche took the stage at VW Night as just another brand in the ever-growing VW stable, right there along with Seat and Skoda. Granted, the Porsche 918 received a bit more attention than the Seat IB-E electric car or the Skoda Fabia RS, but nonetheless, it was clear--Porsche is now one of the VW brands.

No mention was made as to how profitable Porsche was, and it received no more special attention than any of the other VW brands.

Porsche's future is now part of VW's future, and as a group, VW brands will launch 70 new vehicles this year. VW boss Martin Winterkorn said that by 2018 VW will be the No. 1 automaker in the world, both "economically and environmentally." Porsche hybrids will certainly be a part of that.

And here's something to remember if the 918 concept strikes your fancy: Porsche has never produced a concept vehicle that it didn't ultimately build.