Volkswagen prepares to build another brand-new sport utility vehicle at its Chattanooga, Tennessee, plant following the increase in demands for bigger vehicles, the German company’s top U.S. executive stated.
Volkswagen Group of America CEO Hinrich Woebcken informed press reporters at the New York International Auto Show that the company prepared to develop a five-seat SUV in Tennessee, but he refused to say when production would start. The news follows VW’s 2014 statement that the automaker would invest $900 million to construct a new SUV in Tennessee.
Volkswagen will start offering its new seven-seat VW Atlas SUV next month.
Woebcken stated the automaker was moving focus in the United States from a mainly car brand to a “family friendly” car manufacturer offering larger, U.S.-built SUVs.
At the show, significant automakers stated they anticipated the appeal of SUVs to increase in the United States. SUVs’ share of U.S. automobile sales rose to almost 40 percent in last year from 32.6 percent in 2014.
Woebcken would not say if Volkswagen would add extra employees in Tennessee to develop the new SUV.
The automaker will offer four different SUVs in the United States later on this year, a figure that does not consist the new one.
The company stated on Tuesday that it would keep selling the present Tiguan as the “Tiguan Limited” for a number of years even as it plans to offer a totally brand-new, bigger version later this year. The company also revealed it was using an industry-leading six-year, 72,000 mile warranty on its brand-new SUVs.
