Do ANY manufacturers actually make any parts (other than the body panels / shells) themselves?

 

Most if not everything is all outsourced to other suppliers, transported to the factory then built into cars.

Honda

 

Possibly - ask Alonso or Button

No, but they bought them for a different reason, ie they went forwards and were dirt cheap. Now people buy them for the badge, and it's connection to VW-Audi, and the perceived build quality.

I don't think build quality was a problem, they were as good as their contemporaries, though I admit the 80s wasn't a period renowned for its build quality. But Škoda were always at or near the top of customer satisfaction surveys. The handling was a bit wayward on the earlier cars though that was sorted with the introduction of the Rapid.

I can't see that Skoda could survive on their own, all the Skoda brand cars are produced with most parts from the VAG parts bin.  VAG would not allow any other owner to carry on using it's parts, if they did then some form of expensive licence to produce parts would be set in place.   This could only carry on for a small number of years until the models were out of date, then some form of large injection of cash would be needed to design and produce new models. 

All my theory of course but No. they won't sell Skoda as a brand just a bit of rescheduling of the group finances will happen and they have already earmarked 6.5 billion to get them out of the mire, a tad more required I feel.

I agree. The above sounds like the demise of MG Rover who tried and failed to find a new partner after BMW walked out. It would be very difficult to carry on alone, most smaller companies are now part of larger groups. Though I think Škoda would be a far more attractive proposition than MG Rover but would you want them to become part of GM or Renault (to pick two at random). I think they are far better of where they are and as others have said VW have many more niche brands they'd probably shift first so I can't see it happening.

If Skoda was to close down tomorrow, the Million cars they managed to sell in their record year could easily be covered by extra sales of 

VW, AUDI or SEATS as all 3 brands have an almost identical model in the range or actually a better one.

 

The Volkswagen Group would only need to price the vehicles from the 3 remaining brands a bit more realistically.

 

As things are, VW will probably now have to scale up Skoda & promote Skoda more than they have, and they are positioning to do that with moving Porsche executives into the top jobs in the Brands.

 

The fact that many see Skoda as Czech and Seat as Spanish might just help the Volkswagen Group as their VW reputation is trashed.

So that means Audi as well as people with no interest really in cars do have the knowledge they are German Manufactured cars, even though even that is not that accurate.

 

Onwards and upwards for Skoda i would imagine as VW fight to just survive financially.

The Czech Government have been helping with Grants and no doubt will help even more with expansion in their 

Facilities as required.

But then the German Government will ensure that VW also survives.

 

http://automotivemanufacturingsolutions.com/news/skoda-restarts-production-after-summer-shutdown

 

http://blogs.praguepost.com/technology/49954-skoda-announces-new-4x4-octavia-rs-diesel-model

If VW Sales plummet as predicted then Skoda will seem a natural course to feed extra engine and gearbox production.

 

VAG may have to sell various assets to meet the litigation from US and other territories but hopefully Skoda will beneift rather than suffer as the Czech Skoda workers and the place in Czech national pride is clear when you visit CZ.

 

VAG and Skoda need to adapt quickly to this new paradigm of Real Driving Emissions but Skoda, with their petrol engine production facilities could upscale nicely to fill gaps.     

I would think so. There were no shortage of Skoda driver's back in the 80s when I was a kid.

Compared to the sales figures now, or to the competition back then, yes there was.

I'm not sure Skoda would thrive on its own now. Look at how much of the Octavia and Superb are straight from the MQB parts bin. To be competitive in the volume market you need platform sharing to keep costs down.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/654973.stm

 

Every Skoda Model shares the VWG parts & Platforms other than Body Shells upper panels, and even the Citigo shares the Bodyshell,

sometimes the Skoda models have the components behind those on the Seat, VW & Audi.

There certainly has been no new advanced technology first fitted to the Skodas before being used on the

other VWG vehicles for a long time now.

 

Citigo, Fabia, Octavia, Superb, Yeti (no Roomster Replacement currently.)

Skoda CZ has no car with unique mechanical or drive train parts from the 3 Sister Brands.

Thought I read somewhere that the NEW Yeti was getting the engine from the Aldi RS8.

I think VW have been buying parts already from Aldi. Or was it Lidl?

I think VW have been buying parts already from Aldi. Or was it Lidl?

 

 

The cost cutting has started already to put money aside for the billions of fines.

I think VW have been buying parts already from Aldi. Or was it Lidl?

 

Audi - That's the problem!

 

Nothing wrong with Aldi.

"...build quality", which is no longer a reality, if Citgo, Rapid and Octy 3 forums are anything to go by.

 

Hence me saying perceived build quality.

Hence me saying perceived build quality.

 

Yes, I was fooled - thinking a Skoda built car would be better quality than the reality is.

Could be worse, could be a SEAT

Could be worse, could be a SEAT

 

Like we use to day about Longbridge ie a Friday afternoon car, it could be a siesta car.  To be fair many SEATs are make in Catalunya, and they had to be called Spanish, and of of course the Rapid in CZ/SK and then a SEAT badge stuck on it. 

The financial state of the Volkswagen Group before and now might well mean the Banks end up owning VW, 

or even the Banks also in the deep deep poo.

http://bbc.co.uk/news/business-34373637

Germany will (and has the means) bail them out if required. Too many consequences of failure. May be a few state aid arguments, however, I am sure they can overcome them.

Germany will (and has the means) bail them out if required. Too many consequences of failure. May be a few state aid arguments, however, I am sure they can overcome them.

^^^

The German government would never allow VAG to fail.

^^^

The German government would never allow VAG to fail.

 

We gave them VW for nothing after WWII after we turned our noses up at it as did the Americans, like hind sight retards and let them get on with it, anything is a bonus when it was free. VW's history has been an amazing one over the years and a true testament to the German people as a whole. I would agree that the government itself would never let it go under and to be fair are well able to bail it out should the need arise. That said, they are big enough and bad enough to sort themselves out I'd like to think. USA will milk this big time as if they have broken the o-zone layer above them and they don't have the most polluting motor vehicles on earth built in house as is..... What needs to happen fast is for GM and Ford to be found out for the same practices and just restructure the entire system for all and draw a line under it. Ultimately they were sneaky which in most cases resulted in owners paying less in some form of taxes under the BS green diesel banner.