With Volkswagen due to make a decision about the location of its first US factory in more than two decades, the next obvious question is what to build there? We had a chance to pose that very question to Steve Keyes, GM of Public Relations for VW of America. According to Steve, the driving force for the factory is two-fold. First and most obvious is the exchange rate issue. With dollar being worth less almost daily against the Euro, it's increasingly difficult for VW to price cars competitively, especially in the mainstream segments where it primarily competes. The second reason is capacity constraints at the Peubla, Mexico factory that builds VW's highest volume US product, the Jetta. VW of America has set a target tripling combined sales of Audi and VW within the next decade. Meeting those sales goals will require a lot more vehicles to sell at a competitive cost. So the first products out of the plant will likely be the highest volume products, the Passat and Jetta. If the plant is set up to build Jettas, then it could relatively easily be adapted to build any other model that shares the Golf/Jetta platform. That could potentially mean products like the Scirocco and even the Audi TT. Will we see these? Probably not at first, but if demand warrants, it could happen. So if you are all really serious about wanting the Scirocco on US shores, you should start pestering the head office (which just moved to Virginia last week).
[Source: Volkswagen]
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)
OMER @ Apr 27th 2008 3:17PM
I HATE SOME CAR COMPANIES WHEN THEY COME UP WITH A GREAT CAR SUCH AS THE SCIROCCO THEY DECIDE NOT TO BRING IT TO THE U.S...
WTF IMAGINE A SCIROCCO WITH A 3.0TDI.............
B @ Apr 27th 2008 3:35PM
Imagine a scirocco with a VR6 and a haldex?
John Johnson @ Apr 27th 2008 3:52PM
I hate people who use caps lock.
Kumail @ Apr 27th 2008 3:56PM
chill with the caps, people will read your comment, but you make a good point. i really think that vw is considering to bring the scirocco here cause of the new hyundai genisis coupe. they are gonna be selling a lot of cars cause which college student doesn't want a nice looking, affordable coupe'?
zamafir @ Apr 27th 2008 4:15PM
Yeah, Imagine just how well the A5 TDI would sell with a significantly cheaper and faster VW product with the same underpinnings. Imagine reality, where we actually imagine products for the north american market that actually, you know, exist, or will exist.
CAPS are annoying, fantasy products with no cognizant understanding of current platforms are just stupid.
eddy @ Apr 27th 2008 4:45PM
The A5 is built on the modular longitudinal architecture (A modular platform which will be used only for Audis and Bentleys). The A5 is the first car on this platform.
The Sirocco is built on a mixture of Volkswagens PQ35 Architecture (Golf MKV) and the PQ46 Architecture (EOS and Passat)
So that are completely different cars. The A5 is bigger, longer and has much more luxury components.
HeyHuub @ Apr 28th 2008 3:34AM
The 3.0 TDI doesn't even fit in the Passat, so it sure as hell won't fit in the Scirroco.
OMER @ Apr 27th 2008 4:24PM
sorry for the caps boysss...
The Luigiian @ Apr 27th 2008 4:24PM
To be honest, I'm hoping for a Pontiac Firebird that will battle the compact RWD coupes coming out of Toyota and Subaru. Turbo-4, 29 mpg, 2+2 seating (hopefully) and RWD sounds pretty good to me.
That said, I'm all for getting jobs to Americans. C'mon, V-dub, it's good for you, it's good for us. With Ford building its Fusions and Focii (and probably Fiestas when they reach us) in Mexico, we could use some jobs.
P.S. also don't forget about your pickup, we want some of those trucks too!
CarlosMC @ Apr 27th 2008 4:29PM
I doubt about the Scirocco, since it's already being built in Palmela (Portugal) and it seems more of a niche model (?!).
At same time, there's 4 models being assembled there or in planning: Sharan (and it's successor), Eos, Scirocco and a yet to be disclosed model (not the Polo, doubtfuly the Golf - ""maybe" a good surprise", to quote Autoeuropa's Andreas Hinrichs (...)), so, it wouldn't be for shortage of capacity, either (although you never know).
My bet would be a higher volume model: the Jetta/Passat looks more like it, to me.
PA Bob @ Apr 27th 2008 4:33PM
Knowing the Germans, they will probably want to build the big iron here- SUVs and Mid-sized sedans.
The Tiguan is currently built in Portugal, which is a fairly low-cost labor country, but still in the Euro-zone. I wouldn't be surprised to see the Tiguan and Toureg (or its successor) moved here to take advantage of both the lower production cost and proximity to the Largest SUV market.
A mid-sized sedan, like the Accord/Camry/Altima/Mazda6, is probably a good bet for the US factory. Along with the SUVs, the mid-size gives VW the biggest return on investment in building in the US - Higher margins and a bigger market potential.
A Scirocco could have a higher margin, but the overall market size for such a small sporty coupe would be limited, say 20,000 per year versus 100,000 or more for a mid-size. (Nissan sold 240,000 Altimas in North America in 2006. Mazda sold 38,000 Miatas worldwide that same year.)
VW isn't building a plant for fun. If the Scirocco comes here, it will probably be built in Portugal or Slovakia.
F-22 @ Apr 27th 2008 4:36PM
The Scirocco is going to be produced in Portugal, next to the EOS...
CarlosMC @ Apr 27th 2008 4:39PM
The Tiguan isn't being built in Portugal.
PA Bob @ Apr 27th 2008 9:32PM
You are correct, Carlos. The Tiguan is produced in Germany. My mistake.
But that's even a better reason to build it in the US - lower parts cost and non-union labor in the Deep South.
VW will never be able to meet their profit margin and sales goals in the US building in Euro-land.
eddy @ Apr 27th 2008 4:51PM
What America will get is a "new mid-size sedan" which will replace the Passat in America and will be cheaper. It is very likely that this car will have simpler (more reliable) underpinnings and that it will be something aimed against the Japanese mid-size cars.
http://www.egmcartech.com/2007/11/05/vw-to-add-two-new-sedans-in-us-before-2010/
the friendly grizzly @ Apr 27th 2008 5:22PM
So, this new model that will "have simpler (more reliable) underpinnings and that it will be something aimed against the Japanese mid-size cars" translates to yet still another further different boring mid-size sedan with no character, but will feature typical over-complex German electricals.
I can hardly wait!
94 taurus owner @ Apr 28th 2008 2:25PM
That may be True,they could be building the new
CC over there.
Pat @ Apr 27th 2008 7:44PM
I heard that there were going to sell a rebadged Dodge Avenger
Just kidding of course ;-)
friko @ Apr 27th 2008 5:24PM
it's "Puebla", not Peubla.
spacegravity4me @ Apr 27th 2008 6:22PM
Ok, I don't know but has there EVER been a car that has been built here in the states that was not being sold in the states and only exported? If this garbage keeps up and the dollar keeps falling what are we going to become? Like mexico? Ship all the labor over here cause our economy sucks and we need jobs and our currency has become pathetic? I don't want that. Maybe I've got some pride issues but to me that would almost feel like charity and I don't want any of that. I want the dollar to be strong again. I want to be able to order a pair of pants from europe and not end up paying 150 dollars for em(don't ask)! I don't want vw to build the Scirocco here because it's cheaper and then ship it off my shores! They've all (the rest of the world) already got my focus I'll be darned if we become a cheap labor economy pos country. I guess I can always move to alaska. Just live out on the tundra... until it melts. South Pole? Man the early 21st sucks... nothing like I thought it would be. F 9/11. If none of that crap had happened I know things would be different, I just know it! Maybe a dip in the economy but nothing like this, nothing like this. Eh. Rant over, I'm gonna go take a dump. Peace.