The VW Cross Blue is slated to hit U.S. dealership in early 2017 with production starting later this year.
With its sales continuing to decline and the diesel scandal continuing to hover over the company’s future prospects, Volkswagen of America has finally taken a step towards a turnaround with the next stage of development for its new SUV at its Tennessee plant.
Volkswagen Chattanooga has reached an early production milestone with the completion of the first assembled metal test body for the upcoming midsize sport utility vehicle that the automaker is counting on to bolster its fading position in the U.S. market.
The maker’s position in the U.S. has been undermined not only by the diesel scandal, which has sidelined some of its most popular models, but also by the shift of consumers to trucks and utility vehicles.
The launch of its Cross Blue SUV is expected to add some balance to the VW line-up.
The production of the first assembled metal test body is an early stage of moving towards full production of the Chattanooga-made Midsize SUV, which is scheduled to begin production late this year and hit the market in 2017, VOA officials said.
(U.S. vehicle sales soar to near-record levels in April. For more, Click Here.)
The first test body build is used to check the calibration of body shop equipment and processes. The body is then passed on for further testing and development, the company said.
Meanwhile, officials from Volkswagen AG are scheduled to meet with representatives of the United Auto Workers to see if the can iron out labor difficulties at the Chattanooga plant. In December, the UAW won the right to represent approximately 160 maintenance workers at the Chattanooga plant.
The results of the election have been upheld by the National Labor Relations Board but the VW’s management is now preparing to the appeal in federal court.
Back in Germany, Volkswagen AG continues to feel sharp aftershocks from the diesel emission scandal, which has led to heavy financial losses on the company and forced the resignation or retirement of several senior executives.
(Click Here to see more about VW’s plans to meet with the UAW.)
Wolfgang Hatz, the former head of group engine development at Volkswagen and the research and development chief at Porsche since 2011, was suspended shortly after VW’s manipulations were revealed in September, together with other senior managers.
Porsche said this week Hatz had decided to leave because his suspension remained in force more than seven months later.
VW, Europe’s largest automaker, said recently an investigation by U.S. law firm Jones Day examining what role if any senior executives played in the scandal was at an advanced stage and due to be completed sometime in the fourth quarter of 2016.
(VW to spend $8.8 bil to repair or buy back rigged U.S. diesel vehicles. Click Here for the latest.)
Porsche’s supervisory board has named Michael Steiner, head of quality management and a former manager at Daimler, to succeed Hatz immediately.