Volkswagen
Volkswagen Inaugurates New Factory In Tennessee
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Volkswagen finally opened up their new factory in Chattanooga, Tennessee, which will employ 2,000 Americans and build up to 150,000 vehicles per year. VW Chairman Dr. Martin Winterkorn and Secretary of Transportation Ray LaHood were present to inaugurate the factory, as well as the governor of Tennessee and the Germany’s ambassador to the United States….
Volkswagen’s “People’s Car Project” Debuts In China
Volkswagen has launched a new platform called “People’s Car Project” debuting in China. This allows internet users in China to post ideas about cars of the future at zaoche.cn. This project is hoping to inspire the Chinese with VW through the interactive content. The aim is for users to co-develop their Volkswagen model of the…
Volkswagen Launches “Think Blue” Initiative In U.S
Earlier today, Volkswagen launched its “Think Blue” campaign in the U.S. VW’s aim is to “encourage eco-friendly mobility and progressive ideas for responsible action in everyday life”. This launch coincides with VW’s partnership with the Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) in New York, as well as the May 24th inauguration of VW’s plant in Chattanooga,…
Volkswagen Planning Passat Coupe and Convertible
Volkswagen is planning a coupe and convertible variant of the traditional 4-door Passat sedan/ wagon. This coupe is slated to fit below the Audi A5, as well as the convertible version. The 2012 Volkswagen Passat is powered by a 2.5-liter 5-cylinder engine producing 170-hp and 177 lb-ft of torque. Transmission choices include a standard transmission…
Ferrari And Fiat Clean Out 2011 International Engine of the Year Awards
At this year’s International Engine of the Year awards, Italian powerplants claimed half of the awards handed out. Fiat managed to win four of twelve awards with the company’s 875-cc TwinAir mill. The Fiat engine achieved: Best New Engine of 2011, Green Engine of the Year, 1.0-liter Engine of the Year and International Engine of…
Toyota Could Slip to Third in Global Sales Race
Due to the fallout from the recent earthquake and tsunami in Japan, Toyota execs have admitted the auto giant is likely to cede the title of the world’s largest automaker to General Motors. But according to a new Bloomberg report, things may be worse than that, with Toyota poised to slip to third in the…
Volkswagen Begins Car Sharing Project In Hanover, Germany
Volkswagen is cooperating closely with the city of Hanover to launch a new car sharing project with 200 VW Golf BlueMotion vehicles called “Quicar- Share a Volkswagen”. There will be 50 pick-up and drop-off locations throughout the city, however, this number may reach 100 locations. The program was set up to highlight the efficiency of…
Volkswagen Jetta S Gets Price Hike to $16,495
When Volkswagen first introduced its new 2011 Jetta model to America, easily one of the biggest selling points was the $15,995 base price – almost $2,000 below what the previous Jetta retailed for. That price even became the crux of the brand’s marketing efforts. Fast forward 12 months and you won’t find a sub $16K…
Polo R “Likely” Admits Volkswagen Exec
Previous reports of a high-performance R version of the Volkswagen Polo sub-compact have been downplayed in the past, but the German automaker rejuvenated enthusiasm in the idea when it revealed the new Polo R WRC race car last week. With R decals displayed prominently across the car, it’s a clear hint that the Polo R…
Volkswagen Builds First Customer Car At Tennessee Plant
Volkswagen‘s new Chattanooga, Tennessee plant built its first car destined for a customer Wednesday, a dark Blue Passat 2.5L equipped with an automatic transmission. The plant should reach full capacity in 2012, at which point it will produce 150,000 Passats annually. Volkswagen says that the plant will generate $12 billion in economic growth for the region,…
Volkswagen To Launch New Brand Dubbed Kaili In Partnership With FAW, EV Coming
Volkswagen will partner with Chinese automaker FAW to launch a new brand, which will build and sell electric cars for Chinese consumers. Plans were submitted to the Chinese government, although details of the vehicle weren’t publicly disclosed. Honda, Nissan and General Motors have recently expanded into creating their own Chinese market brands in partnership with…
Audi Recalls A6, RS6 and S6 For Fuel Tank Issues
Volkswagen is recalling 5,992 2001-2004 Audi A6, 2003 Audi RS6 and 2002-2003 Audi S6 models because a fuel system flaw could lead to a vehicle fire, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. This fuel issue is only affecting vehicles with 4.2-litre engines. “The aging of the plastic material in the fuel tank rollover…
Volkswagen GTI ‘Edition 35’ Celebrates with 235-HP
Volkswagen has just announced a new ‘Edition 35’ version of the original hot hatch, the GTI. Celebrating three and a half decades since the first GTI launched back in 1976, this new model gets unique front and rear bumpers and custom wheels. There’s also special ’35’ badging on the fenders, door sills and on the…
Volkswagen and Microsoft Team Up to Deliver In-Car File Storage
The integration of multimedia into vehicles is no longer a novelty, and storing media files such as MP3s is becoming more and more common. So it’s no surprise that Microsoft has decided to forge yet another relationship in the automotive sector, this time with e.solutions, the company that supplies Volkswagen with their infotainment software. Microsoft…
Chimney Pulled Down By 4 Volkswagen Amarok Trucks
To highlight the launch and strength of the all new Volkswagen Amarok pickup, four of the trucks were used to demolish a 219 foot industrial chimney. The industrial building was in Reading, Berkshire, UK, and the trucks were attacked to the top of the chimney using a 650 foot length of rope. The 2.0 litre…
Volkswagen Jetta Sales Spike
Since the launch of the redesigned Volkswagen Jetta, registrations among new owners have soared, suggesting that the newer, more affordable Jetta is a home run with consumers. The Jetta has climbed almost 61% during the first two months of this year compared to over a year ago. In those two months, 20,272 Jettas were registered…
Volkswagen To Launch Plug-In Hybrid Range In 2013
At the 32nd International Motor Symposium in Vienna, Austria, Volkswagen head honco Dr. Martin Winterkorn announced that the Volkswagen Group will launch a range of plug-in hybrids starting in 2013, calling electric vehicles the “task of the century” for the auto industry. Winterkorn didn’t specify which models would get a plug-in hybrid variant, and the move comes…
Volkswagen Polo R WRC Revealed
Volkswagen gave us a first look at their Polo R WRC, a competition version of their Polo R hot hatch destined for the World Rally Championship. Powered by a 1.6L TSI four-cylinder engine, the all-wheel drive Polo R makes 296 horsepower thanks to turbocharging and direct injection. The usual competition modifications, like a rollcage, bucket…
Compacts Selling Better Than Subcompacts
Even with skyrocketing fuel prices, subcompacts are selling less than their compact counterparts. The Ford Fiesta was the overall leader in the subcompact department, 9,147 sales but still trailed the larger Focus’ 17,265 total sales. Honda Civic sales rose 7% to 26,777 which is more than triple the Fit’s total of 8,116 units in April. Furthermore,…
Volkswagen China Gets Four Different Passats, Including Long Wheelbase Version
Volkswagen could barely sell one generation of the Passat here in the United States, but over in China, VW is selling no less than 4 different Passats, from the mid-1990’s B5 chassis car to the all-new, “Made for America” Passat that will be sold here. The New Passat, as the current car is dubbed, will…
Paul Newman’s Ford 351-Powered Volkswagen Beetle For Sale; You Can’t Afford It
This red 1963 Volkswagen Beetle, known as the “Newman Bug”, isn’t your typical old Beetle, and it’s price tag of $250,000 should reflect that. The drop top Bug, owned by Paul Newman, is fitted with chrome bumpers and a black cloth top in good condition but the beauty of this car is in the rear…
Light Vehicles Sales Boosting Average Fuel Economy In Q1 2011
Improved sales in the first quarter of 2011 in the subcompact and compact segments has accounted for better average fuel economy among light vehicles. The average fuel consumption of light vehicles in the United States is 22.7 mpg, representing a 1.9 percent jump over the average fuel economy of light vehicles in the first quarter…
Volkswagen Finishes First Quarter With Record Sales
Volkswagen sold a whopping two million vehicles around the globe in one quarter, the first time in the company’s history. The criticism of the new Jetta didn’t damper sales at all—sales profits grew over 30% in the first quarter, netting VW a tidy 37.5 billion Euros. Growth in China, India, and Eastern Europe helped fuel…
Volkswagen Mulling Entry-Level Chinese Brand
Volkswagen is looking to add an entry-level brand for the Chinese market as a means of stabilizing its lead in the Chinese marketplace. “We are currently evaluating with our partner First Auto Works whether we need to add a domestic brand to enter the low-cost portion of the Chinese market,” Soh Weiming, executive VP for Volkswagen’s…
