VW, Porsche, Audi Unlikely To Follow Tesla and Ford in EV Price Wars

VW Group says they’re not cutting prices on EVs until they’re profitable.

byAaron Cole|
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The CEO of the Volkswagen Group told a German newspaper over the weekend that the company and its affiliated brands plan on keeping their powder dry for any potential EV price war that may have been sparked this month by Tesla and now Ford.

“We have a clear pricing strategy and are focusing on reliability. We trust the strength of our products and brands,” VW Group CEO Oliver Blume told the Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung. What’s more, according to Automotive News, VW Group’s Porsche is considering raising the prices on its vehicles by 6%, according to unspecified dealer sources—as early as March. 

Blume told the newspaper that VW wouldn’t forgo profitability for volume, which sounds like a no-brainer, but it’s not necessarily par for the course. Many automakers and startups have thrived on a growth-first model, and it’s not unheard of in the auto business either. Selling EVs at a loss to gain market share, only to steadily raise prices as the cost of materials and workplace efficiencies drop isn’t just part of a playbook, it is the playbook for some EV makers.

VW Group sounds like they’re going in a different direction, which may be a risky move for one of the world’s largest automakers. Its Chief Financial Officer Arno Antitz also told the Frankfurt newspaper that it would make “hardly any” investments in internal-combustion technology and that the automaker believes the most expensive days of EV development will be over in 2-3 years.

“The double investment burden will fade then, and that is when we want to make significant returns from electric mobility,” he told the outlet.

That’s echoed around Europe so far with the Renault brand boss saying the French automaker wouldn’t consider price cuts because of its negative impact on residual values and existing customers. That’s a lesson that Tesla is learning after its massive price cut, and others may learn if they follow that lead. 

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