Volkswagen's CrossBlue Said To See The Light In China
The Volkswagen CrossBlue and CrossBlue Coupe will be made in China by the Shanghai-Volkswagen joint venture, Carnewschina reports today. According to the report, the car will be built when Volkswagen’s new factory will open in Changsha in China’s Hunan Province.
The plant will have an annual output of 300,000 units, construction of the plant started yesterday.
The CrossBlue Coupe with ( according to Autoweek) “sporty looks and proportions—and eye-popping 415-hp output” and the more traditional CrossBlue were concepts shown at this year’s Shanghai Auto Show. The concept uses a 295-hp, V6 TSI engine, augmented by two electric motors that add 54 hp and 114 hp, for a net total output of 415 hp for the system.
Volkswagen says then “when the car’s full power potential is utilized, the SUV becomes a sports car: The Volkswagen accelerates to 100 km/h in a mere 5.9 seconds, and its maximum speed is 236 km/h (147 mph).” Volkswagen claims a combined fuel consumption of just 3.0 l/100 km (in the new European driving cycle or NEDC, 78 mpg , definitely not EPA).
Whether this power train will still be in the car when it goes on sale remains to be seen. A seven-seat and a five-seat variant is planned. The production version will be based on Volkswagen’s new MQB platform.
According to Carnewschina, “The CrossBlue is developed to satisfy China’s ever growing appetite for bigger, faster and more luxurious SUV’s. The CrossBlue Concept is basically the successor of the current Volkswagen Touareg, the Crossblue is moving into new territory for the Volkswagen brand.”
According to Chinese rumors, the new Changsha factory will also build a new Volkswagen sedan, code named VW511, that will be positioned between the Volkswagen Passat and the Volkswagen Phaeton.
Bertel Schmitt comes back to journalism after taking a 35 year break in advertising and marketing. He ran and owned advertising agencies in Duesseldorf, Germany, and New York City. Volkswagen A.G. was Bertel's most important corporate account. Schmitt's advertising and marketing career touched many corners of the industry with a special focus on automotive products and services. Since 2004, he lives in Japan and China with his wife <a href="http://www.tomokoandbertel.com"> Tomoko </a>. Bertel Schmitt is a founding board member of the <a href="http://www.offshoresuperseries.com"> Offshore Super Series </a>, an American offshore powerboat racing organization. He is co-owner of the racing team Typhoon.
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I really like the idea of a diesel / electric hybrid. One step closer to my idea of the perfect "green" vehicle that is a pure diesel electric.
"positioned between the Volkswagen Passat and the Volkswagen Phaeton" Is VW still pushing the Phaeton? Have sales ever gone above single digits?