Volkswagen is to modify and get “better value” out of its platform strategy as a means of cutting costs. Group chairman Berndt Pischetsrieder says he intends to extend each platform's longevity to 12 years from the current eight year average.

In the German magazine WirtshaftsWoche this week, the VW chief is quoted as saying that seven new car models will be build in the next four years on the new Golf V platform – beginning with the compact Touran in 2003.