----- Original Message -----
Sent: Thursday, September 27, =
2001 9:05
PM
Subject: Germans To Pay People =
To Crush
Vanagons
September 27, 2001
Volkswagen Asks German Govt. Aid
By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
FRANKFURT, Germany =
(AP) --
The head of Volkswagen (news/quote<=
/A>).
Europe's biggest carmaker, called Thursday for government help to =
stimulate
new car sales in the wake of terrorist attacks on the United States, =
although the company said it's too early to assess the full impact =
on
business.
Chairman Ferdinand Piech said in a statement he =
would
expect ``to see clear political support'' from the government in =
helping
auto manufacturers make it through what is likely to be a tough
time.
Volkswagen braced for a potential drop in the market =
this week,
idling plants in the German cities of Wolfsburg and Emden as a =
preventive
measure to avoid possible inventory buildups. These plants make some =
of VW's
most important models, including the Golf, Polo and =
Passat.
Auto
analysts say new car sales and showroom traffic in Europe have =
slowed in the
wake of the attacks, as they did in the United States. Before the =
Sept. 11
attacks, Europeans were expected to buy 14.3 million cars this year, =
down
from 14.8 million last year; now, analysts say sales could go as low =
as 14
million.
Piech proposed a program where the government would =
pay
people to scrap their old cars. He said such a plan would not only =
increase
demand for new vehicles, but help the environment as =
well.
The
government could recoup some money in taxes on the new car =
purchases, he
said, but provided no further details.
German luxury =
automaker BMW
said Thursday the attacks were not anticipated to affect its =
business. BMW
gets roughly half its profit from selling its luxury cars in the =
United
States and Great Britain.
``We don't anticipate any drastic =
economic
consequences for the BMW group, based on available data,'' said =
Michael
Rebstock, a company spokesman.
=
=====================
=======
The proposal
above was met by immediate acceptance from the German government, and =
as a
result all 16" syncros were immedaitely rounded up and destroyed. All =
T3
Westfalias are scheduled to be destroyed next week, and all modified =
T3 VW
vans with other than stock motors the week thereafter. However, an =
exemption
was granted for any vehicle purchased by FLO and sent to America for =
resale.
:-) -- Derek
_______________________________________________
Derek
Drew =
CEO & Co-Founder
New York, NY
=
========================
====
"Best Expert Review Site"
for product reviews on the Internet
Jan. 2001, PC World Magazine
=
========================
===
derekdrew@rcn.com
212-580-6486
Alternate numbers for the industrious =
phone caller
that wants to try every avenue: 212-580-6486 (best), 917-848-6425 =
(cell);
202-966-7907 (Work), 212-580-4459 (Home), 202-966-0938 (Home), =
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(fax [efax]), 212-269-3188 (New York Seaport office).