VW's Skoda Brand Could Be Planning to Launch in U.S.
Volkswagen could be planning to introduce the Skoda brand to North America.
In a recent move, Skoda filed for a number of trademarks with the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO), protecting the names Skoda Superb, Superb, Octavia and Yeti for the very first time in North America.
Patents are often filed simply to protect the naming rights of certain products and it is possible that Skoda wanted to make sure that no American company tried to scoop up those names.
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The alternative reason is that Skoda is planning to launch in the United States, which is not an entirely impossible idea. Profits at the Volkswagen passenger car brand are down 86 percent since the diesel-emissions scandal broke, though the Volkswagen Group remains profitable, thanks to its three big money makers: Porsche, Audi and Skoda.
Volkswagen passenger cars never really achieved mainstream sales numbers in North America and now with a tarnished reputation, the VW brand may never be able to gain back the public’s trust. So bringing in the Skoda brand to either replace the Volkswagen brand or to simply bolster its offerings could be the company’s strategy on rebounding from the diesel scandal.
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Stephen covers all of the day-to-day events of the industry as the News Editor at AutoGuide, along with being the AG truck expert. His truck knowledge comes from working long days on the woodlot with pickups and driving straight trucks professionally. When not at his desk, Steve can be found playing his bass or riding his snowmobile or Sea-Doo. Find Stephen on <A title="@Selmer07 on Twitter" href="http://www.twitter.com/selmer07">Twitter</A> and <A title="Stephen on Google+" href="http://plus.google.com/117833131531784822251?rel=author">Google+</A>
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With their emissions record, VW should buy the Trabant marque from what's left of Sachsenring.
I just had the opportunity to drive around in a Skoda Octavia estate 4x4 in Iceland, and it was a really sweet car to drive. The build quality was very solid, and it felt like a much more expensive car than it is.