Mr Ruddenklau joins Volkswagen from Hyundai Motors, where he was Chief Operating Officer for New Zealand, bringing with him over 15 years of experience across sales, marketing and finance.

Of his decision to move on from Hyundai, one of the world’s fastest growing automotive companies, Mr Ruddenklau explains, “Volkswagen is a recognised global market leader in quality and innovation and it’s a brand I have long respected. “Far from a niche European car, Volkswagen is a brand on the move with huge mainstream potential, both locally and globally. It is this opportunity for growth along with the unique car for every Kiwi offering which excited and attracted me to the business.”

European Motor Distributors’ General Manger, Glynn Tulloch says, “We are fortunate to have someone with Tom’s experience and passion lead the brand. He has an enviable track-record in business across all disciplines and with significant motor industry success under his belt, we are certain he will bring a new dimension to this challenging role.”

Since joining Volkswagen last month, Mr Ruddenklau has already immersed himself in all things Volkswagen. He has just returned from Germany, where he got to see and experience the full range of exciting new Volkswagen product and had the opportunity to fast-track his knowledge, direct from the source.

“What struck me most was the amount of amazing innovation and technology that we are fortunate enough to have available in our products here in New Zealand today,” said Ruddenklau.

Mr Ruddenklau joins Volkswagen during a busy yet exciting time with the launch of the highly anticipated new Volkswagen Beetle later this year, the second season of the Small Whites sponsorship and extensive dealer and service growth across the country. The upcoming Fieldays event in June also promises to be an exciting opportunity for Volkswagen to engage with consumers and the remainder of the year will see a strong push into the corporate and fleet sectors of the New Zealand market under Ruddenklau’s leadership.

Overall, 2012 will see the continued focus on making quality and innovative Volkswagen product accessible to Kiwis from all walks of life, from all corners of the country, thanks to an extensive product range and an increasingly strong focus on value. Ruddenklau replaces Dean Sheed, who will remain within the European Motor Distributor Group as Audi’s newly appointed General Manager.

Article courtesy of Scoop Independent News

Volkswagen’s European small hatchback, the up! won World Car of the Year 2012 while Range Rover’s Evoque was crowned World Design Car of the Year.

The up!, Evoque and the Citroen DS5 were the top three for the Car of the Year award, voted by 66 international motoring writers.

Although the up! was launched in December it topped new vehicle registrations in Germany.

Around the same time, Euro NCAP awarded the up! a top score of five points and also gave it an advanced award for its city emergency braking system.

On a minimal footprint (3.54m long) the up! seats four people and has efficient drive technologies.

“This award shows once again that in the up! our designers and engineers have created a vehicle that has been thought through in minute detail,” said Professor Martin Winterkorn, chairman of the Volkswagen board.

Article courtesy of The New Zealand Herald

Today, the Altima is already the second most successful passenger sedan in the USA with sales of more than 20,000 per month.

The appearance of the Nissan Altima in New Zealand will be a strategic boost to our ever improving passenger car line up and will offer a very compelling alternative to the familiar products in this segment.

We are also pleased to announce today that it is the Altima that will be the vehicle that raises the bar in Australian motorsport as Nissan’s entry in the 2013 V8 Supercar Championship. The Nissan Altima V8 Supercar will introduce modern generation sedan styling and technology to the series.

Currently, Kelly Racing co-owner and driver Rick Kelly and CEO John Crennan are in New York for a closer look at Altima as the team prepares to build the factory entry into the V8 Supercars Championship from 2013. This series is hugely popular in both Australia and New Zealand and we are hopeful of a local round being added next year. Obviously this would add enormously to awareness of the new Altima and to the entire Nissan brand.

The all-new Nissan Altima V8 Supercar will be powered by a race-prepared version of the Nissan VK Series V8 engine. This engine series is built and widely used in the US market and in various race series around the world.

The VK Series V8 already forms the basis of the powerplant for the FIA GT1 Nissan GT-R, which successfully contested the FIA Championship in Europe last year. For the 2013 V8 Supercar Season, the all-alloy, overhead cam, multi-valve engine is being developed for V8 Supercars by Kelly Racing.

The VK Series V8 is the powerplant employed in the all-new Y62 Series Patrol that is currently under consideration for release in our market.

Should we proceed with the new Patrol project we will have a direct linkage between the road and the track with the VK Series V8 engine.

The Nissan Altima is poised to become the new benchmark in the hotly contested medium sedan segment when it goes on sale. Combined with its entry into V8 Supercars, Australia’s premium motorsport category, the Nissan Altima will provide a level of innovation and excitement that has never been seen before in the category.

More details will be made available on both the vehicle and the race program through 2012 as we prepare to start racing the Nissan Altima in round 1, 2013 and for the sale of the vehicle in the second half of 2013.

Article Courtesy of Nissan New Zealand