The End Is Nigh For The Phaeton

Volkswagen's flagship Phaeton won't be around much longer.

Bloomberg reports that Volkswagen will end production of the Phaeton flagship sedan next March. The pet project of former Volkswagen Chairman Ferdinand Piëch, the Phaeton was launched in 2002 to compete with the likes of the Audi A8, BMW 7-Series, and Mercedes-Benz S-Class. But the Phaeton never really got any traction in terms of sales, most likely due to the Volkswagen badge on the front. In 2014, Volkswagen only built 4,000 Phaetons.

But all is not lost, the Phaeton name will return in 2020. It will be used on a fully electric luxury sedan.

As for the Dresden plant, the home of Phaeton production, it will be repurposed to build a new electric model. A spokesman for the plant tells Bloomberg that plant will go under renovations after the Phaeton production is complete and that it will take about year to complete.