2014 Volkswagen Jetta Gli Edition 30 on 2040-cars

Auto blog

2014 Volkswagen Beetle Convertible gets the R-Line treatment

Volkswagen just launched the topless Beetle Convertible at the Los Angeles Auto Show in November, but we're already seeing the next step forward in the topless Bug range with this, the R-Line. We'll admit, this treatment falls under the "all show and no go" category, but it's still a pretty potent little cutie.
The R-Line starts with a standard Beetle Turbo Convertible but adds unique 19-inch aluminum wheels on lower-profile tires, LED daytime running lamps and Xenon headlamps. Naturally, there are R-Line badges aplenty both on the interior and exterior, and we must say, the whole package looks pretty darn snazzy.
Pricing has yet to be announced, but when it goes on sale later this year, the hotter convertible will join Volkswagen's growing R-Line portfolio that now includes the CC, Beetle hatch, Tiguan and Touareg.

Porsche-Piech buy 10% stake in VW's holding company

In August, 2009, as the scuttled merger of Porsche and Volkswagen had gone bad and Porsche was backed up against the ropes, Porsche Automobil Holding SE (PAHSE) relinquished a ten-percent stake in itself to Qatar Holdings as well as options it held on 17 percent of VW shares. The sale meant that, for the first time since the founding of the company 61 years before, an entity outside the Porsche and Piech families had a say in the running of PAHSE.
Buying that ten-percent stake back returns full ownership to the two families, the holding company's sole possession being ownership of 50.7 percent of VW's common shares. The price paid wasn't disclosed, but at market rates the purchase would be worth close to $1.25 billion. Qatar intends to hold onto the 17-percent stake it has in Volkswagen.

VW using other manufacturing locations as leverage in battle with TN [w/video]

We've reached a new step in the ongoing drama at Volkswagen's factory in Chattanooga, TN. The United Auto Workers recently dropped its opposition to the union vote and agreed that it wouldn't hold another ballot for at least a year. Now, the new question becomes where VW is going to build its forthcoming midsize SUV.
Earlier, it had been considered all but certain that the SUV, likely a production version of the CrossBlue concept (pictured above), would be built in Tennessee. However, it seems the Chattanooga factory might have competition to produce it. In emails obtained by The Detroit News, VW's lawyer wrote to the Tennessee economic development department in January saying, "While we understand there are some 'non-deal' issues that are causing a delay in the TN solution, VW has been successful in reaching agreement on terms at the alternative locations."
As previously reported, the state of Tennessee allegedly offered VW about $300 million in incentives to build the vehicle there and create an estimated 1,350 jobs, but it later rescinded the deal. Newly leaked documents from NewsChannel 5 (WTVF-TV) in Nashville allegedly show just how close that offer was to being completed. It appears that VW actually sent the government the first draft of a memorandum of understanding agreeing to the incentives, but the state removed the offer in late January.