VW Aims to Spur Sale of Golf V with Discounts

German carmaker Volkswagen has resorted to yet another discount policy to kickstart the sale of Golf V, its most important model. A VW spokesman confirmed on Monday that the company was handing out bonuses of €928 ($1,122) to car dealers for every successful trade-in of a second-hand car for a Golf V in the face of weak economic growth in the automobile sector. He said a bonus allowed the dealers more negotiating room for price reductions on the Golf. The Golf V, which is considered one of VW's most lucrative models, got off to a sluggish start when it was introduced in autumn 2003. Then, VW fuelled its sale by offering free air-conditioners to customers if they bought a Golf V. In May this year, VW sold 41,000 Golf V cars in western Europe, an increase of 11.2 percent as compared to the old generation Golfs during the same period a year ago. VW is aiming to sell around 600,000 Golf V's this year.