Flashback: We write the year 1997. The competition could have been warned after Volkswagen had raised the perceived quality of the VW Passat, which had recently taken place in a model change, to a level that made most of the players look a bit down-to-earth. But when the first pictures of the VW Golf 4 were seen in Cologne and Rüsselsheim, those responsible first fell into shock and then into hectic activity – the second Opel Astra was postponed by half a year in order to be able to improve at least a bit of its appearance.

What Volkswagen had created in terms of superficial sheen, however, was not so easy to recreate . In addition to optical gadgets such as clear-glass diffusers, small gaps or the blue-red illumination of the instrument cluster, this included above all a fine lining of the interior that was previously unusual in this class. In the first contact, the fourth Golf looked much higher quality than the competition. The fact that this fact aroused expectations in terms of quality and durability that the car did not meet at every point is of course also part of the truth.

Time jump A little more than 20 years later, the general conditions are completely different in every respect. With its exhaust gas fraud, which is often glossed over as cheating, Volkswagen has sparked a conflagration that the group, which is still powerful in the market, wants to exit with all its might. To this end, it has been decided to push ahead with the conversion to electromobility with all available means. When this plan was tied down, it was a courageous decision, because the registration figures for e-cars were by no means encouraging.

Nevertheless, the heavy industrial tanker Volkswagen set in motion and, measured in industrial terms Benchmarks, a platform for electric cars created in an incredibly short time, on which countless group models will be based in the coming years. That little bit of packaging, i.e. what the customer sees on the surface, is only an accessory in vehicle development.

Almost finally stumbled At the pace of development at which Volkswagen has tried, collateral damage can probably hardly be avoided. But the start of the first car on this basis was so bumpy that CEO Herbert Diess almost stumbled. He only narrowly escaped complete disempowerment, but had to give up part of his decision-making power. This was not only due to the rough start of the ID.3, but also to the unfortunate start of the Golf 8 – still the most important pillar of the group. In a figurative sense: If this successful model has symptoms of a mild cold, the entire company is at risk of severe flu. Accordingly, one reacts behind the scenes in Wolfsburg when things don’t go as planned in golf.

Save on the mainstay … For VW, the Golf is the carrier that has to handle a lot of load. Now one can argue about whether this is wise and whether it will stay that way in the future. The fact is that the company has not done badly with this strategy in the past. Against this background, it seems downright bold what VW has presented to loyal Golf customers. The unbuttoned operating system polarizes what is an astonishing risk with such an eminently important mass model. At least as amazing is the haptic refinement that VW is openly displaying with the model change.

This was one of Volkswagen’s competencies: things appear to be of high quality on the surface allow. It’s brutal what VW delivers with the Golf 8 in this regard. A Mazda 3 (test) looks much more cleverly put together in this regard, and it is not the only competitor with which this is the case. VW is in a sense going the opposite way as in the year 1997.

. .. and on the bearer of hope Volkswagen has great hopes for the ID.3. So much has been invested that a flop would be dramatic for Wolfsburg’s cash situation. That is not to be expected, but in the first contact one wonders whether VW has not stopped investing a little too early. This doesn’t mean the embarrassing software glitch or the processing defects. Both can be attributed to a hasty start of production. I believe that Volkswagen can and will remedy these deficiencies relatively quickly, however annoying they are for the first customers.

What is not so easy to cure is this superficial goodness. In its latest edition, the Golf has already clearly declined for everyone compared to its predecessor. The ID.3, which is so important for the group, undercuts it again to such an extent that some will wonder whether VW is only thinking of its shareholders. Almost everything in the interior gives the impression that one tried with brute force to sell the base model under the brand of 30. 000 to press Euro. Whether that was successful remains to be seen, because the cheapest ID.3 should only start in the middle 2021.