After three full years of declining sales in the US, VW, in need of rescue, turned to a novel marketing gimmick: free insurance for a year. Company executives won't comment on the alleged program, which some dealers in Illinois and Wisconsin say will be offered on Golfs, Beetle coupes and Beetle convertibles in February and March 2005. Some say the deal is better for the company than rebates, which eat into cars' resale value — an area where VW has slipped in recent years. Of course, if they ever offered that deal in a high-insurance state like NY or NJ, they'd be better off shutting the whole company down and selling it for scrap metal.
Volkswagen Tries 12 Months of Free Car Insurance to Lure Buyers [Bloomberg]
Related:
More ads/promotions [internal]