Because they cost too much?

Although BMW has known to throw price as well. But you really get a very basic car for a lot of money, this is the same for a Mercedes although I'm not sure what kind of car you can get with a Volvo under 200k.

Let's face it, there really isn't any other new car out there which can offer as good a value and performance as the Passat B8 2.0. Certainly not the Accord, nor the Camry or the Mazda 6. The closest rival would be the Ford Mondeo, the Peugeot 508 is totally out of its league until the new model comes.