Volkswagen AG has announced that it wonÂ’t build a three-wheeled car, dubbed the GX3 and targeted at the U.S., because of concerns about future lawsuits resulting from the vehicleÂ’s design.
"With regret, we have concluded that the current and foreseen product liability issues at this time were just too great,Â’Â’ Adrian Hallmark, VolkswagenÂ’s U.S. chief, said in an e- mailed response to questions.
Volkswagen intended to introduce the two-seat vehicle, which would have been equipped with two wheels in the front, weighed 1,300 lbs and had no roof, as early as next year.
The GX3 was the first major product to come out of VolkswagenÂ’s Project Moonraker program, which sends German engineering, design and marketing employees in their 20s and early 30s to live in the U.S. to get a better idea of what American customers want.
Since showing the GX3 in Los Angeles, Volkswagen had received "overwhelming" customer responses in favor of the model and spent several months "exhaustively evaluatingÂ’Â’ limited production of the vehicle.
Volkswagen had planned for the GX3, which could be operated with a motorcycle license, to fill a niche within the market for an affordable second car for use during nice weather. Sales of the vehicle would have focused on warm areas within the U.S., in particular California.
