VW U.S . Chief says no Scirocco for North America

We first heard of the possibility Volkswagen could ignore the U.S. market for the launch of the new Scirocco back in May when VW of America exec Adrian Hallmark said in an interview "we don't want it." The reason being, Hallmark explained, was because it would cannibalize sales of the "iconic" GTI and, to a lesser extent, the Eos convertible.

In the weeks following those comments, a VW spokesman said no confirmation had been made and any final decision would come from CEO Martin Winterkorn closer to the car's launch at next year's Geneva Motor Show.

The CEO of Volkswagen of America, Stefan Jacoby, has now revealed to Car and Driver that the Scirocco will not be returning to North American shores.

He said "we need to focus on our core products," such as the next-gen Golf and Tiguan SUV as well as a new range of budget sedan models currently in development. "The 2009 Scirocco is lovely, but we can't have everything," Jacoby lamented.