Will Erdogan save the Superb?
Ever since Škoda Auto said in 2015 that it knew nothing about the defeat devices in its diesel cars, the company started looking just a little too "simply clever" for its own good. Who could believe it anymore? The unions are particularly skeptical and fear that if Volkswagen opened a new multibrand factory in Turkey in 2022, it would mean the end of Superb output in the CR. Škoda is tongue-tied, waiting for VW to decide. What the unions should probably be fearing is that the Superb will be completely subsumed into the Passat, in line with comments by VW's head of product strategy, Michael Jost, about converting Škoda to VW's downmarket brand. Into this debate stepped Turkish Pres. Erdogan, who rolled over the border into Syria. Culture Min. Lubomír Zaorálek told Czech TV yesterday that he finds it absurd, when Czech arms sales to Turkey are being curtailed and the Superb is being moved there, to continue bilateral EU trade with that country. Could it be that Erdogan saved the day? Would VW kill Superb production in the CR without the assurance of being able to import the Turkish replacement?
Glossary of difficult words
defeat device - hardware, software or a design that interferes with or disables emissions controls under real-world driving conditions, even if the vehicle passes formal emissions testing;"simply clever" - Škoda Auto's marketing slogan;
multibrand - applying to more than one brand;
tongue-tied - difficult to express oneself;
to subsume - to include or absorb in something else;
downmarket - towards or relating to the cheaper or less-prestigious sector of the market;
to curtail - to impose a restriction on;
to save the day - to find or provide a solution to a difficulty or disaster.