Despite lacklustre sales, the VW Phaeton is alive and well and still coming to life in Dresden.
The "well" bit was very much emphasised by the company last week with an addition to the luxury flagship range - a V6 3.0 litre TDi with 225 bhp all-wheel-drive and a six-speed Tiptronic automatic gearbox.
This more "populist" Phaeton, according to VW, has a top speed of 144 mph, and manages 0 to 62 mph in 8.8 seconds.
There could be a touch of déjà-vu here: this same engine also does service in the VW group's other flagship car, the Audi A8. It goes on sale later this year and in the German homeland its price tag will be €60,480. This suggests a figure of €90,000 or more here.
It almost goes without saying that driving the Phaeton is an impeccable experience. It moves along with the hushed vitality expected of a luxury saloon.
The new V6 3-litre TDi maintains these characteristics and its diesel breeding is most times virtually impossible to identify. Nor can you help but be impressed with the fact that it produces its maximum torque (450Nm) almost from a standing start (from 1,400 rpm upwards).
But does it have a right to life as a Volkswagen or People's Car?
VW's top people were stoically saying that the Phaeton is here for the long haul, while admitting that production at the Dresden plant of 25 cars a day is far short of its daily capacity of 105 cars.
Phaeton may not be making its mark in the luxury class yet but its remarkable "see through" glass production plant in Dresden is impacting on the life of the city. The factory has now become a major tourist attraction. It's a car plant like no other with wooden parquet floors and the ambience of a top hotel.
On the Irish scene, Phaeton is being marketed by two Dublin VW dealers, Grange Motors and Park Motors.
Just four cars have been registered since it went on sale earlier this year but VW sales manager Tom O'Connor says he is confident of increasing this figure with an intensive marketing campaign that includes VIP test drives.