Volkswagen AG's upcoming new U.S.-built sedan will be substantially larger than today's Passat, and the plant site that will produce it in Chattanooga, TN, is designed to be expanded to twice its current size, top officials say in Wolfsburg.
VW executives met with journalists during a preview of the '10 Golf, now on sale in the U.S. But they cannot resist teasing reporters with tidbits about the upcoming sedan that will start production in 2011 at the new plant in Tennessee.
VW Chief Designer Walter M. de Silva reveals several rough sketches of the new sedan at the end of a presentation on the new design language of the Golf, but declines to offer further details.
The sketches depict a larger, more-imposing sedan than today's Passat. Several executives have said the current Passat is considered too small to compete head-to-head with the likes of the Toyota Camry, Honda Accord and Chevrolet Malibu in the U.S. market.
“We will make the Passat successor exactly match the Toyota Camry in size,” one executive says during a casual conversation with reporters.
The '09 Passat has a 106.7-in. (271-cm) wheelbase and is 188.2 ins. (478 cm) long, while the '09 Camry has a 109.3-in. (278-cm) wheelbase and is 189.2 ins. (481 cm) long.
The new car, code-named NMS, will be offered with a diesel engine and VW's acclaimed DSG dual-clutch transmission.
The German auto maker is at a crossroads in the U.S., Volkswagen of America Inc. CEO Stefan Jacoby tells Ward's during a recent interview in Frankfurt. The company is introducing new advanced powertrains just as fuel economy is becoming a paramount concern for consumers.
Meanwhile, the pending production start at Chattanooga blends neatly with VW's volume aspirations. For these reasons, there is an “ideal opportunity” for the auto maker to change its image in the U.S. market, he says.
