Volkswagen has ditched its plan to build an entry-level world car in China after studies have shown that the Chinese market would prefer a bigger car. It will instead produce a new version of the Polo.
Volkswagen has changed its plan to build an entry-level world car in China after its studies showed the Chinese market would prefer a bigger car.
The German company built a prototype “China car” – a four-seater based on a platform smaller than the current Lupo. Instead, Volkswagen will produce a new Polo – a similar one to the European version that will debut at the Frankfurt motor show in September – exclusively for the Chinese market. It will be built in Shanghai, with production to begin in January 2002.
“We studied its feasibility and found out that the Chinese market was not yet ripe for such a concept,” said Robert Büchelhofer, VW board member for sales and marketing. “Instead, the Chinese want a larger car than this.
“Annual volume will be 100 000 and they are all intended for the local market,” he said. “No exports are planned, not even for other Asian markets.”