Sales are falling, rivals are surging, and China no longer craves the four rings. CEO Gernot Döllner is cutting bureaucracy, betting on speed, and trying to steer the brand through a maze of tariffs, scandals, and shifting markets.
Author: Max Hägler
Max Hägler has been a business editor at the weekly newspaper DIE ZEIT since spring 2023. Born in Munich, he studied political science there and established a publishing company (Clash) during his community service. He began reporting from Bavaria as a regional correspondent for taz during the 2005 federal election. In summer 2008, he started working with Süddeutsche Zeitung, first as a correspondent in Nuremberg and Regensburg, later as a correspondent in Baden-Württemberg. Most recently, he worked for Süddeutsche Zeitung from Munich as a business reporter. One focus of his work is observing industry, particularly the automotive industry. He is a delegate of the German Journalists’ Union to the German Press Council.
As Chancellor Friedrich Merz’s government doubles down on highways and combustion engines, critics warn that ignoring electric trends and digital innovation could cost Germany its place in the global auto industry.