Today’s Morning Dump headline is having a little fun with pronouns. Specifically, the pronoun “you” as in you might not be able to buy new cars from certain brands. There are many reasons for this. The brands could completely vanish or, short of that, could restrict themselves to certain markets.
In the category of brands that might simply not exist is SEAT, the Spanish brand that created a sub-brand that is now more important than the original. In the category of brand that may not exist in a specific market, I am going to place Maserati, which is rumored to be selling basically zero cars regularly in certain parts of the country.
Porsche will, one hopes, always exist, but the whole idea of European brands exporting electric vehicles to China seems remote, as sales numbers show how little demand there is. Which European brand will be the next one to completely bail on China?
It’s official that Volkswagen has a new boss in the United States, but will he oversee the addition of a brand or the removal of one?
SEAT Is Allegedly On The Chopping Block
Sociedad Española de Automóviles de Turismo, or SEAT, is not a brand you probably often think about if you don’t spend a lot of time in Europe. It’s a Spanish car company that got its start primarily making cars with partner Fiat. In the ’80s, SEAT and Fiat had a little disagreement, leading Volkswagen to step in and eventually take a controlling interest in the company.
Curiously, the Barcelona-based carmaker launched a racing trim of its Ibiza model called Cupra (for Cup Racing), which eventually expanded to other models and became its own standalone brand. The brand produces an attractive mix of cars, and announced an intention to come to the United States. That was a pre-tariff decision, so who knows now, but all the interest in VW’s Spanish arm has been generated by Cupra. In fact, through the first half of the year, Cupra is outselling SEAT by a large margin.
Why have both? As we’ve discussed, Volkswagen CEO Oliver Blume wants to cut 50% of all models, which means reducing a lot of derivatives. Why not just cut an entire brand that probably doesn’t need to exist anymore? According to Autocar, that’s kind of the thinking right now in Wolfsburg:
For Volkswagen, maintaining two Spanish brands increasingly means spending money developing, marketing and distributing cars that often compete for the same customers.
This duplication is particularly difficult to justify as the Volkswagen Group embarks on its biggest restructuring programme in decades under CEO Oliver Blume.
According to internal documents cited by Germany’s Bild newspaper, the Volkswagen Group’s reasoning is explicit: continuing Seat in its present form would require additional resources while strategic development within the brand group is to be focused on Cupra.
There are a lot of attractive and interesting SEAT models, so the loss of the SEAT brand would be a loss for enthusiasts. Can Volkswagen continue to afford to make SEATs? That’s a harder question to answer.
How Long Will Stellantis Keep Maserati?
Above is the trailer for the Maserati movie, Maserati: The Brothers, the third film in the “movies about Italian carmakers” series from the producer of Ferrari and Lamborghini. My only hope is that LaForza is next. There’s some extreme acting firepower in the is movie: Anthony Hopkins, Al Pacino, Andy Garcia. Also, Jessica Alba is in it.
Will this renew interest in the fledgling marque? When Maserati and Ferrari were linked, the brand had a good run of new vehicles and renewed prestige. After Ferrari peaced out and became its own separate company, the case for the brand became a little harder. With sales falling dramatically every year, I keep thinking the company is going to get sold, and then Stellantis leadership comes out and says “there’s no plan to sell Maserati.”
Maserati doesn’t seem to charge enough to maintain its existence on selling anything under 15,000 to 20,000 vehicles a year. The company sold fewer than 8,000 cars last year. According to a post from Car Dealership Guy, Maserati dealers are struggling:
OVERHEARD:
“60 of the 86 Maserati dealers in the US have not reported a single sale this month.
13 have 1 sale.
Only 4 have sold more than 2.”
Maserati doesn’t report sales in the traditional way, and since January of this year its sales are just reported in consolidated shipments, so there’s no way to break out monthly sales. This does seem consistent with what we’ve seen dealers offering to get cars off the lot.
A new plan for Maserati is going to be announced at the end of this year, and I wouldn’t be totally surprised to hear that the brand is going to be pulled from some markets.
Imports Of Electric Cars To China Drop 99% From Peak
I love a Porsche Taycan, and if I could charge a used EV I’d definitely consider picking one of these up. If I lived in China, there’s no way in hell I’d buy a non-Chinese-produced electric car. They’re too expensive and Chinese automakers (and Tesla) are offering deals that are simply too good.
The latest numbers from the China Passenger Car Association confirm that Chinese consumers feel the same way.
China imported just four battery-electric passenger cars per day in July, the sharpest decline yet in a market that once relied heavily on European luxury EVs.
The 125 vehicles that crossed the border in July represent a 99 percent drop from the 2023 peak, as China’s booming domestic production makes imports virtually obsolete.
Battery-electric imports peaked at 30,124 vehicles in 2023 before plunging to 16,768 in 2024 and just 3,475 in the first seven months of this year, according to data from the China Passenger Car Association (CPCA).
If you want to know why European automakers are looking to cut production in Europe, this is why. After being able to export cars en masse to China, brands are either localizing production (BMW builds all its EVs for the market in China), or getting out entirely. I could see more brands joining Škoda, which is leaving the market this year, following both Polestar and Renault.
Meet VW’s New American Head Honcho
Confirming what we’ve known for about a month, inveterate wall-leaner Marco Schubert is going to be the new head of all of Volkswagen Group’s operations in the key North American market, replacing Kjell Gruner, who was one of the car execs of all time.
Here’s VW CEO Oliver Blume on the change:
“I am delighted that, in appointing Marco Schubert, we have gained a sales professional with a wealth of international experience to serve on the Extended Executive Committee of the Volkswagen Group for the North America region. With him, we will intensify our commitment in the most important growth market for the Volkswagen Group. In his Group function, Marco Schubert has successfully aligned Sales at Volkswagen Group across the brands and set central strategic courses for the future. Leveraging his expertise and profound understanding of customers and markets, he will play a pivotal role in driving the strategic and organisational transformation of our company across North America.
This, of course, has set up a musical chairs situation at the company, with Martin Sander replacing Schubert as head of Audi sales, Martin Jahn replacing him, Martina Biene replacing Jahn, and Christiane Zorn replacing Biene.
Schubert has a tough road ahead. What’s the point of Volkswagen? How is he going to balance Scout and Rivian (technically, both are independent companies, but c’mon)? What’s he going to do with Audi? Porsche? It’s a hard gig.
What I’m Listening To While Writing TMD
I love a music video that’s a little film, and “Fancy” by Reba McEntire as her alter ego, Fancy Ray Baker, is one of the best. I always forget it’s actually cover.
The Big Question
Do you have a favorite SEAT? If so, what is it?
Top photo: Seat, Maserati, Porsche
I can quite easily see VW selling SEAT to Stellantis so they can add it to their collection of broken toys.
On the plus side we could get a new SEAT Marbella!
TBQ: at one point, I was actively pushed away from the SEAT brand after getting into a nasty online debate with a SEAT owner from overseas.
I still don’t hold much interest in the brand. Can’t get the actual SEAT branded cars, but can get a GTI anyway. I guess there was that obscure Toledo silhouette racer from the early Aughts. And a WRC rally car of some sort that never did anything.
The GranCabrio Folgore is the 1st and only Maserati I’ve ever really been interested in. 788 hp AWD electric 4 seater convertible for $150k. I can’t see why they aren’t all over the place!
Agreed – I’d order one if I had the funds to do so.
When does “Fix It Again, Tony: A Mechanic’s Love/Hate Story” premiere?
Checking listings on the Lifetime Channel . . .
I was hoping for something a little more prestigious. Like The Hallmark Channel. Sequel already in the works with a Christmas theme.
If the biggest name you can get is Judith Light, be grateful it’s Lifetime and not PlutoTV.
Right after: Still Eating A Taco,
Name-dropping Maserati in your radio-friendly pop song is about to very unflatteringly date you
Hey, Joe Walsh may prove to be immortal and “Life’s Been Good” is timeless.
Matt, I hope you realize how many chair jokes your Big Question for today has opened you up to…
So you’re telling me to take a SEAT while I can.
Got it.
Just like the game of musical chairs.
Let the music play.
I blame you for this now being in my head so I am returning the favor.
Dance your cares away, worries for another day
Let the music play, Down at Fraggle Rock
Hell yeah!
Let it play-ay-ay!
My favorite seat is by the campfire. Dog under one hand and adult beverage held in the other.
Sounds like a “Life is Good” shirt.
The one that got away, a SEAT Ibiza, in the mid 1990s.
Had to buy a car had the cash lined up and the car, said Ibiza, then the cash had to go somewhere else.
Buy the time payday came a week later it had gone, to someone I knew.
She still has it in 2026 and it still runs like a sewing machine….
I think Maserati has had the most hysterical problem for the past 10-ish years: FCA was far more adamant about the Italian side of the business but forgot to actually invest.
The Quattroporte, Ghibli, and Levante should’ve gotten next generations by the early 2020’s on Giorgio. It’s not like the chassis wasn’t meant for them: Giorgio was supposed to be the Charger/Challenger & even 300’s next platform after the LX/LD/LA, and the Maserati 3 were all done on the 300’s platform…
Stellantis will keep Maserati to only never admit they messed up, like they do with Chrysler and Dodge at this point.
I loved my Exeo ST (username checks out).
But I fear SEAT is beyond saving. The corporate clown show at VAG has decided it’s easier to launch a new brand with a tacky copper-colored logo than to revitalize one that was known as cheap but cheerful (I bet they hated the cheap but part). As I witnessed myself last week, they are turning the SEAT pavilion in Wolfsburg’s Autostadt into a Cupra one right now.
The 199 398 500 a was excellent, though.
Can you explain to ignorant Americans like me what’s special or different between SEAT, Skoda, and VW? I’ve only been in a SEAT twice and a Skoda once as a passenger and they both seemed identical to a VW Jetta but with different seat fabric. Are there subtle differences between the brands, different configuration options such as engines, or is it loyalty to a particular country manufacturing it?
I remember attending my one and only VW shareholders’ meeting in the late 90s (I didn’t hold many and happily sold them before SHTF) when Ferdinand Piëch presented a diagram of his strategy. The Y-axis was used to mark sportiness (if that’s a word) and the X-axis to mark price. Audi was placed in the top right quadrant and Škoda in the bottom left one. VW (slightly bottom right) and SEAT (slightly top left) were positioned conspicuously close to each other and to (0;0).
In GM terms, SEAT/Cupra might equal a kind of cheap Pontiac to VW’s Chevrolet, while Audi is a kind of sporty Cadillac. I find it hard to think of a Škoda comparison from the US – maybe Plymouth if VW were Dodge and Audi Chrysler?
Bargain basement Plymouth? Not in my experience…the Skoda Fabia we rented was quite the nice little car. I’d choose it over the Seat Ibiza and Renault Clio we’ve also rented, and on par with the Alfa Giulietta.
Sorry, I seem to have chosen the wrong comparison. I would gladly pick a Škoda over the equivalent more expensive but more tacky VW.
SEAT (Spanish) is Pontiac. VW (Germany) is Chevy. Skoda (Czech) is Oldsmobile.
(That comparison only partially works).
I saw a Cupra a few months ago in Mexico and thought it look freaking awesome.
The Cupra dealership in Mexico City that I drove past looked really cool.
Maybe Marco will, I dunno, decide to sell something besides mediocre SUVs? They managed to chase off this multi-car loyal customer
Seriously. I’ve had three water-cooled VWs in succession. I would certainly not buy a new VW now. The GTI would tempt me, but there’s no manual, despite the competition still offering them.
I was around for the VAG car craze of the 2000s and 2010s, the aftermarket for VWs of that era was and still is remarkable. It’s genuinely depressing to see how little enthusiasm around new VWs remains, but it makes sense given their current product mix.
What do you mean the shift to sell boring, cheap, commodity cars that simply aren’t as competitive as every other boring commodity car didn’t work? VW’s weren’t for everyone back then, but at least they did something different and were generally better than the competition in some way if that was quality, feel, sportiness, luxury-ish, etc. If I want a boring commodity car that VW is trying to sell now, I’m going for something that has a nicer interior & tech (Kia/Hyundai), has lower running costs (Toyota, Honda, and even Ford/GM), or is most likely to not have a hiccup after my willful neglect as I try to pretend I don’t own it (hybrid Toyota).
Cupra should never been made a separate brand. Like the Spanish version of Dodge/Ram.
Agreed.
The Cupra sub-brand eating the SEAT main brand is sorta the Oakland->Pontiac thing. Now both are dead. Take that as a harbinger if you want.
VW is sort of an old-GM style mess. So reducing redundancy is the smartest move. It worked for FCA till they decided to go 20 years with the same product and not replace the money makers. Or market them.
So…you know. It may go bad, or it may go worse.
Oldsmobile, another tragic victim of autocorrect.
Nope – Oakland.
Oakland was the brand. Pontiac was a cheap Oakland sub-brand. Became more popular than its parent badge.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oakland_Motor_Car_Company
Or did I not get your joke?
Nope. You’re right. I just wasn’t aware of that deep of a cut.
#nerd
I cant imagine VW getting much say at Rivan they are the largest public shareholder by about 3% but only at 15%. The others will group together to not have what vw is doing. If they can right there ship maybe the others will listen but obviously vw is very broken and a sinking ship.
Seat inca is my favorite seat and is what seat probably should be. Weird Spanish van.
The Chinese could probably use some more brands it would stop them from using whatever random letter generator they are using. VW better act quick because it will probably a limited time offer.
Stellantis needs to off load brands and facilities they keep meeting with Chinese companies, it always looks like it’s going to happ. Even if it makes sense to kill or sell Maserati the Italians will have a hard time with it. They will probably do something more illogical.
There’s an angle.
Sell the Chrysler nameplate to Leapmotor; it’s not like it’s really being used right now and then build an American brand under a Chinese company worldwide would be an interesting about-take on what American companies already do elsewhere.
Stellantis probably needs to bring leap motor in. Would be better for them to trade the brand and a facility or two for stock. Maybe they can get ownership of leap motor up to 25% or higher. Use mobileye or similar for adas for us produced cars and maybe sell the new k car. Or they could do what they did with opel. Just make the car and brand it as Chrysler.
The idea of creating stand alone brands out of small subgroups of vehicles seems very much of our social media, clicks-now era. Anything to grab attention in the short run, possibly at the expense of the long run in terms of opportunity costs. I always wonder if there are really that many people who bought a RAM but wouldn’t have bought the same truck as a Dodge Ram?
“The Big Question:
Do you have a favorite SEAT? If so, what is it?”
SEAT Fiorino.
SEAT Panda Terra.
Small regular-cab pickups are awesome. The Terra has a back SEAT, but it’s still kind of a 2-door pickup.
Itself a Fiat Fiorino which competes directly with the VW Saveiro. There are still a few tiny pickups for sale outside the US.
A friend of mine took a Saveiro, transplanted a Golf GTI powerplant into it and it was absolutely bonkers. Something like this: https://i.pinimg.com/736x/c6/c2/ee/c6c2eebc8b5919bb6ec68572c2e339ce.jpg
There’s a wingback I fall asleep in regularly, so probably that one.
Beats sleeping on the toilet seat.
Many memories of the boss waking me up there and saying to get back in the bed.
VW could never find a home for SEAT. It always felt, to me, like it competed against Skoda as a “discount VW”.
Stellantis could cut RAM and roll it into Dodge. Or, the opposite. And barely anyone would notice. Would it save money? I don’t know. But it would be sure nice if they brought over a few models to expand the lineup over here. Dodge has two? Chrysler has one or two? Fiat has one/none?
Seriously, Stellantis, you just seem to want to make it Ram/Jeep dealers selling everyone a HEMI at this point to the person walking through the door with lowest credit score along working through a half-consumed case of whatever-today’s-cheapest beer might be.
The original plan was to have Škoda as a discount VW and SEAT as a discount Audi. The rather aggressive Cupra designs seem to suggest they’re still thinking along these patterns.
Unfortunately VW was already a discounted Audi.
Then VW decided they needed to move up-market and the difference between VW and Audi was less clear. As a result, now Audi is in awful shape and one has to wonder if VW has been slowly killing Audi in its sleep for years.
So now there is very little Audi for SEAT to be a discount for.
I absolutely agree with everything you say. I might just add that another reason for Audi’s awful shape is that their lineup sucks and has been doing so for years.
Unfortunately, the case for keeping SEAT is a challenging one. Is there even a SEAT on the market in Europe that doesn’t have a duplicate VW or Škoda available as well?
Let’s expand that: is there a Skoda, or Audi that doesn’t have a VW body-double?
Heck, VW badges their own bodydoubles as other VWs.
Not sure how VW gets its mojo back in the US. They don’t sell anything that isn’t a worse version of another car companies model. The EV’s are uncompetitive, they don’t have a hybrid, and the SUV lineup is at least 5 years behind the competition.
The only VWs that are any good are the GTI\R and the Jetta, and both are pale shadows of what they once were.
As for SEAT, who cares? Just call all the cars Cupras and call it a day. It worked for Oldsmobile when everything they sold was a Cutlass something-or-other.
The VW EVs are actually pretty good. Maybe not great for spreadsheet shootouts, but they’re designed well to be cars for people who aren’t early adopters. They deliver fine performance and range.
They are very good deals at the moment.
Just yesterday I was talking with a friend of my who leased an ID4 and he said the lease end can’t come soon enough. He has pretty much stopped driving it and while his wife does use it she doesn’t like it either and is looking forward to the end of the lease too.
What are the gripes?
The one he mentioned yesterday were the windows, roll it part way down for a little venting and then when you go to roll it up, it goes all the way down before going up and closing. The most maddening part of that is that sometimes it will close directly and he can’t figure out any reason why it does one or the other. He also complains about the infotainment and how it takes “forever” to wake up and then connect to his phone, or not, again depending on some unknown factor. He also isn’t happy with the real world range.
Weird window behavior. That would annoy me too.
And VW infotainment is garbage until they can get Rivian to fix it for them
VW needs to go back to what made it initially successful. Make affordable and cheerful cars like the original Beetle and Transporter. Design them to be easy to fix *if* they break. If a newbie mechanic can figure out how to replace a water pump in an hour and an experienced guy in 40 minutes, wonderful! That “if” is doing heavy lifting given their recent history.
Making a Cupra brand never made the smallest bit of sense. SEAT was supposed to be the expressive, passionate VW brand. Why didn’t they just put the effort of Cupra into revitalizing the main brand, since they were supposed to be the same thing?
Can Cupra be folded back into SEAT? Do we have a few years of SEAT Cupra Formentor, SEAT Cupra Born, etc? Or is SEAT too far gone to save? They barely have a lineup at this point (3 cars).
Add to the list the ones I can no longer afford even if they are extant. Bye buy indeed.
I’m somewhat partial to my (home) office chair.
Really like the one I have, too.
I didn’t see myself walking into that one, and yet, here I am.
We will always be here to find the lowest-brow humor possible from the big question.