Photo: VW
When Martin Winterkorn was running the show at Volkswagen, he told the media that the company plans to launch a low-cost car brand in China in 2018. At VW AG’s Annual Media Conference and Investor Conference, current chief executive officer Matthias Muller assured that VW was on track with the plan.
FAW Automotive of China is a state-owned automotive manufacturer that has fully fledged joint ventures with General Motors, Toyota, and Volkswagen. One of the Big Four in China alongside SAIC Motor, Chang’an Motors, and Dongfeng Motor, FAW Automotive struck a joint venture with Volkswagen in 1990.
Before this deal, Volkswagen teamed up with the SAIC Group in 1984. The result of that partnership is the Volkswagen Santana, the car of choice of Chinese taxi drivers. Today, the joint venture sells lots of cars adorned with a Volkswagen badge, including the Phideon. But that is that and the subject we're interested in is the low-cost brand, so let’s focus on it.
Winterkorn told the German media that we should expect “an SUV, sedan, and hatchback" from the yet-unnamed brand. According to AutoCar.co.uk, current head honcho Muller implies that there will be two SUVs, one of which will be a mid-sized offering. Make no mistake about it: that's an intriguing turn of events.
“In China, we are working full steam on the budget car with our joint venture with FAW-Volkswagen. We plan for it to be an independent brand there,” Muller also declared. There’s no info available on the second SUV, sorry.
The Chinese brand will be the thirteenth in Volkswagen AG’s portfolio. “To my mind I’ve expressed [that] thirteen brands is not a weakness but a strength,” added a surefooted Muller. On an ending note, it remains to be seen if the no-frills sport utility vehicles will cost between €8,000 and €11,000 ($9,110 to 12,520 at current exchange rates), as Winterkorn said when he was the numero uno at Volkswagen.
Before this deal, Volkswagen teamed up with the SAIC Group in 1984. The result of that partnership is the Volkswagen Santana, the car of choice of Chinese taxi drivers. Today, the joint venture sells lots of cars adorned with a Volkswagen badge, including the Phideon. But that is that and the subject we're interested in is the low-cost brand, so let’s focus on it.
Winterkorn told the German media that we should expect “an SUV, sedan, and hatchback" from the yet-unnamed brand. According to AutoCar.co.uk, current head honcho Muller implies that there will be two SUVs, one of which will be a mid-sized offering. Make no mistake about it: that's an intriguing turn of events.
“In China, we are working full steam on the budget car with our joint venture with FAW-Volkswagen. We plan for it to be an independent brand there,” Muller also declared. There’s no info available on the second SUV, sorry.
The Chinese brand will be the thirteenth in Volkswagen AG’s portfolio. “To my mind I’ve expressed [that] thirteen brands is not a weakness but a strength,” added a surefooted Muller. On an ending note, it remains to be seen if the no-frills sport utility vehicles will cost between €8,000 and €11,000 ($9,110 to 12,520 at current exchange rates), as Winterkorn said when he was the numero uno at Volkswagen.
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