Citing inside management sources from Volkswagen, a news report from German weekly business magazine WirtschaftsWoche said the German automaker wants to produce its Tiguan compact SUV in North America in order to reduce costs and protect itself against fluctuation of exchange rates. Officially, Volkswagen declined to comment on the magazine report.
At present, the North American version of the refreshed Tiguan SUV is imported from Germany with production taking place at Volkswagen’s Wolfsburg plant. The German automaker recently opened its first plant in the United States in Chattanooga, Tennessee. The $1 billion factory assembles the North American market 2012 Passat and has an annual capacity of up to 150,000 vehicles.
The German automaker has two more models in its range that are made in North America, the new Jetta and Beetle, both of which are produced in Mexico.
WirtschaftsWoche said that it has not yet been established if the North American Tiguan would be produced at the Chattanooga facility or at VW’s plant in Pueblo, Mexico.
PHOTO GALLERY
