BETTER PARTSVolkswagen brings big SUV
Wolfsburg July 14, 2014
Volkswagen's sales in the U.S. market are declining, even though brands like BMW and Mercedes are growing on the other side of the pond. If the Wolfsburg want to achieve their goal to deliver in the U.S. from 2018 800,000 vehicles, then you have to act.
Shorter model cycles
Firstly, the model cycles to be shortened and with special models that are more geared to the wishes of U.S. car buyers, more sales should also be made. The told us VW Chief Development Officer Dr. Heinz-Jakob Neußer in January 2014, on the auto show in Detroit. One of these new models, which is also in this country come on the market, the Beetle Dune, in Detroit as a design study premiered.
When is large SUVs is " Midsize "
On the other hand, it needs new models and especially a large SUV (which is interesting for the Chinese market ). In Detroit Neußer has already announced that a new SUV will come with great probability. It is now one hundred percent official. Volkswagen CEO Prof. Dr. Martin Winterkorn confirmed today in Wolfsburg that the " Midsize SUV " comes from.
Important models missing
Whether the measures are sufficient to provide the desired results safely, remains questionable. The new SUV is expected to be ready until 2016. And it initially involves only a model, for example, while rival BMW for years offering a wide SUV model range, the latter still produced as a powerful and high-margin M models, all in the USA from X3 to X5 to X6 it. VW would but can also use a pick-up well, after all, in the U.S. the top sellers. The Amarok made including in Argentina is not offered in the United States because it is too small and? classified as an agricultural product? is also subject to a high import tax of 25 percent, which would make it too expensive.
Base: The study Cross Blue
This is based on the study Cross Blue model was developed specifically for the North American market. For the first time the study was seen in January 2013 at the auto show in Detroit. If VW here of " midsize SUV" speaks, but a seven-seat vehicle is meant that is larger than the VW Touareg. But since SUV giants such as the Cadillac Escalade are in the U.S. as that clothing size is just under " Midsize ".
German works council is actively
Volkswagen also announced that the Chairman of the Group Works Council of Volkswagen, Bernd Osterloh, will move to the Board of Directors of Volkswagen Group of America. Osterloh was with the Produktpolititk in the U.S. so far not satisfied. He now said: " The North American market offers great opportunities which we did not use in my view, in the past consistently enough." In addition, the works council chief wants to work for the interests of Volkswagen employees in Chattanooga.
Porsche Cayenne future of Osnabrück
The Volkswagen Group also announced that the Porsche Cayenne to be assembled in Osnabrück due to high demand from the summer of 2015. Part of the Cayenne final assembly will continue shift from the Porsche factory in Leipzig in the Volkswagen factory Osnabrück. In Osnabrück are to be produced per year, an average of 20,000 Cayenne. For this to be invested 25 million euros. Allderdings omitted from the end of 2016, the Osnabrück production of the Porsche Boxster and Cayman models.
Porsche factory in Leipzig at the border
At present, the body shells of Cayenne (as well as the VW Touareg ) at the Volkswagen plant in Bratislava are manufactured in Slovakia, painted and then transported to Leipzig for final assembly. Because of the " high customer demand," the Cayenne models, Macan and Panamera Porsche Leipzig is too busy. All two-door Porsche, so Boxster / Cayman, 911 and 918, however, will in future come from Zuffenhausen. But Porsche is investing more than 400 million euros, as the company announced . (ph)