Volkswagen from 1991 to 2000 The 2000 Volkswagen Golf GL, in North American form In 1991, Volkswagen launched the third-generation Golf, which was Eu

Volkswagen from 1991 to 2000
The 2000 Volkswagen Golf GL, in North American form

In 1991, Volkswagen launched the third-generation Golf, which was European Car of the Year for 1992 (the previous two generations were nominated but lost to the Citroën CX in 1975 and the Fiat Uno in 1984). The Golf Mk3 and Jetta arrived in North America just before the start of 1994 model year, first appearing in southern California in the late spring of 1993. The sedan version of the Golf was badged Vento in Europe (but remained Jetta in the USA, where its popularity eventually outstripped the Golf).

The late 1990s saw a gradual change in perception of the company's products - with Audi having elevated itself into same league as BMW and Mercedes-Benz, Volkswagen moved upmarket to fill the void left by Audi; with SEAT and the further addition of the Czech car maker Škoda being acquired in the late 1990s, now occupying what was once VW's core market. The first tangible evidence of this was the fifth-generation Passat in 1996 with its high-quality interior trim and standards of build quality which were demonstrably a cut above the run-of-the-mill Ford Mondeo, Opel Vectra and Peugeot 406.

This move upmarket was continued with the Golf Mk4, introduced at the end of 1997 (and in North America in 1999), its chassis spawned a host of other cars within the Volkswagen group — the Volkswagen Bora (the sedan, still called Jetta in the USA), New Beetle, SEAT Toledo, SEAT León, Audi A3, Audi TT and Škoda Octavia. However, it was beaten into third place for the 1998 European Car of the Year award by the winning Alfa Romeo 156 and runner-up Audi A6.

The other main models have been the Polo, a smaller car than the Golf, and the larger Passat for the segment above the Golf. The Scirocco and the later Corrado were both Golf-based coupés.

By the early 1990s, Volkswagen's annual sales in the United States were below 100,000, and many car buyers found the company's products to be lacking in value. Some automotive journalists believed that Volkswagen would have to quit the North American market altogether. VW eventually realized that the Beetle was the heart and soul of the brand in North America, and the firm quickly set about creating a new Beetle for American and Canadian showrooms.
The Volkswagen New Beetle proved to be a popular concept, especially in North America.

In 1994, Volkswagen unveiled the J Mays-designed Concept One, a "retro"-themed car with a resemblance to the original Beetle but based on the Polo platform. Its genesis was secret and in opposition to VW management, who felt it was too backward-looking. Management could not deny the positive public response to the concept car and gave the green light to its development as the New Beetle. The production car would be based on the Golf rather than the Polo, because the Polo frame was too small for the car to pass crash test standards in the U.S. It has been quite popular in the North America and is now gaining in the European Union.

Volkswagen's fortunes in North America improved once the third-generation Golf and Jetta models became available there. Sharp advertising and clever promotional stunts, like including Trek bicycles, and accompanying bicycle racks with a limited edition of the 1996 Jetta sedan, were credited for the firm's recovery in the U.S. and Canada, but the introductions of the New Beetle and the fifth-generation Passat were a major boost to the brand.

In the UK, Volkswagen's market share grew throughout the 1990s. In 1990, the Golf was Britain's 12th most popular car with nearly 50,000 units sold. The Mk3 Polo achieved similar success in the mid 1990s, but in 1999 the Mk4 Golf was Volkswagen's first ever entrant in Britain's top 10 list of most popular new cars. Its success continued into the 2000s, while the Polo and Passat were never far outside the top 10. Bad news for Volkswagen during this era was a dip in customer satisfaction. A brand which had built its reputation on reliability was now being overtaken by marques whose reputations had been damaged by quality problems. This bad press took several years to eradicate.

In the late 1990s Volkswagen acquired the three luxury brands Lamborghini (through Audi), Bentley and Bugatti which were mainly due to Ferdinand Piëch and added to the group portfolio. Audi's plans for Lamborghini included a small supercar later to be named the Gallardo, and a new halo vehicle, the Murciélago, and later the Reventon limited edition halo car. In late 2008 the idea of a 4-door saloon for the Lamborghini brand was shown in the form of the Lamborghini Estoque concept.

For Bentley, its future within the Volkswagen group seemed bright as the launch of the Bentley Continental range helped Bentley post record-breaking sales of 10,000. Bentley is in 2009 going to launch a new Arnage-replacing car codenamed Project Kimberly, the car being named the 'New Grand Bentley.' The name is uncertain.

Bugatti, after Volkswagen purchased the rights to use the name, showed three concept cars, the Bugatti EB110 (coupe and saloon) and the Bugatti Chiron. Bugatti then launched the Veyron hypercar, with a top speed of 252 mph (407 km/h). Although Bugatti makes a huge loss on every Veyron, Volkswagen is still going to keep the brand and maybe will launch a new Rolls Royce Phantom-rivaling saloon rumoured to be called Royale.
[edit] Volkswagen in the 21st century