Skip to main content

Volkswagen Reaffirms Chattanooga Investment Plans

  • U.S. remains one of the most important markets for Volkswagen

Chattanooga, Tenn./Wolfsburg, Germany, October 29, 2015 – The Volkswagen Group has reaffirmed its commitment to expanding its Chattanooga facility, where it plans on producing a newly developed midsize SUV for the U.S. market. As previously announced, the Group plans on a total investment of approximately $900 million in the production of a newly developed, seven-passenger SUV. In the state of Tennessee alone, Volkswagen Group anticipates a $600 million investment and creation of 2,000 additional jobs.  Production of the new midsize SUV is scheduled to begin in Chattanooga toward the end of 2016.

“The United States continues to be one of the most important markets for Volkswagen, and our commitment to Chattanooga and the state of Tennessee is clear proof of that,” said Michael Horn, president and CEO, Volkswagen Group of America. “The Chattanooga plant is a core part of our strategy in North America. Here and throughout the region, we will work toward meeting the demands of our U.S. customers and regaining their trust in the Volkswagen brand.”

In addition to investing in a new manufacturing line for the mid-size SUV, Volkswagen has created a new Engineering and Planning Center in Chattanooga. This center will house all future projects for the North American market through a central location, enabling the company to quickly and efficiently implement market-specific changes to vehicles.

“Today, we reaffirm our support of the Chattanooga plant, our employees and the broader community,” said Christian Koch, president and CEO, Volkswagen Chattanooga. “We know we have a lot of hard work ahead of us, but this is a crucial moment in our efforts to deepen our commitment to America.”

To allow for the production of the new midsize-SUV for North America, the current space at the plant in Chattanooga will be expanded by 50,000 square meters. Production of the new vehicle will be integrated into the current plant structure.

Volkswagen has already invested more than U.S. $1 billion in its factory in Tennessee. Currently, more than 2,400 employees work at the plant; this summer, the 500,000th U.S.-built Passat was built.

The post Volkswagen Reaffirms Chattanooga Investment Plans appeared first on VWVortex.



from VWVortex http://ift.tt/1P9D5fq
via IFTTT

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Project SportWagen: Going Stage 2 with APR

    When we last left you, the humble little SportWagen was fresh from the development process with our friends at AWE Tuning, sporting a new downpipe, exhaust and intake, allowing things to breathe a bit easier.  The car sounded great, but there was no getting around the fact that our wagon was still quite, well, slow.   While we realize that nothing we do to the Golf SportWagen at this point will make it a race car, we still felt compelled to do something .  To put it bluntly, we had a fever, and the only cure was more power. Flash forward a few hours, and we found ourselves at Waterfest, staring down APR’s palatial spread and the numerous tuned vehicles surrounding it.  Earlier in the year, APR had hinted to us that their 1.8 TSI files would be quite impressive, and based on what they were able to do with the 2.0 TSI found in the new GTI and our time in their Golf R, we knew it’d be worth the wait.  So with this in mind, we lined our G...

Volkswagen’s Gone to California with Grand California Camper

Volkswagen is bringing the California XXL concept to production. It will debut at the Dusseldorf Caravan Salon as the Grand California. It’s set to be based on the medium wheelbase Crafter van. That’s the company’s full-size commercial van, larger than the T6 Transporter based California. The high roof means room for adults to stand up, though it won’t get the concept’s extended length. The Grand California offers a full wet bathroom. It’s not exactly spacious, though, measuring in at around 31.5 x 33-inches. A toilet, shower, and sink are all crammed into that space, but at least there are motion sensor lights to stop you from reaching for a switch. Standard, the Grand California it comes with berths for two adults. Space for two children is optional, but they’ll be stuck in a berth amove the driver’s area. The kitchen offers a sink, stove, and two fridges. The front seats swivel to add seating space when the RV is parked. It’s also got solar panels, an integrated satellite dish,...

Audi Teases A7 Details with New Video

Audi’s gearing up to unveil the latest iteration of the A7, and to get you excited they’ve released this teaser video focusing on the details. The lights, the lines, the interior are all teased here, and though on its own the video doesn’t give us a strong sense of what the whole car will look like, with all of the other details we’ve seen so far we now have a pretty good sense of what’s coming. As you might expect, the updated A7 will look broadly similar to the outgoing A7, but will differ in the details. Based on what we’ve seen, the changes look good. As was reported yesterday, we’re expecting a 3.0-liter turbocharged engine, a 4.0-liter V8 twin-turbo, a 2.9-liter twin-turbo V6, and an RS7 that could reportedly make up to 700 hp thanks to the Porsche Panamera’s hybrid drivetrain. We’ll know for sure, though, on Thursday, October 19, when the car is revealed. You can watch the livestream on our site or at audi.com at 2:00 pm. The post Audi Teases A7 Details with New Video app...