Volkswagen Chairman Confirms Budget Chinese Car

In an interview with German magazine Der Spiegel, VolkswagenVolkswagenGermany, 1938 > present98 models
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Group Chairman Martin Winterkorn said that the company is trying to rapidly expand in the US, Russia and China, and among the future plans include building a cheaper car for China that will cost between €6,000 and €7,000 ($8,000 to $9,300).

Winterkorn said that the exact specifications for the car have not been finalized yet, but that the car will be built. He said that the market for cars like this amounts to 3 million cars a year in China and a million cars a year in India. The car's development will come from Germany for the design and engine, but final development will be done in China. Production is scheduled to start in 2015.

In the interview, Winterkorn also gave his take on the current world auto market.

"The European auto market is brutally weak at the moment. Many individual markets are at historic lows, such as Italy, France and Spain. And there is no hope of a rapid recovery there, either. Of course, as the number one manufacturer in Europe, that hurts us," said Winterkorn 

To achieve the EU-mandated 95g/km of CO2 emissions standard by 2020, Winterkorn said that Volkswagen Group will have to offer more EVs and hybrids basically whether they are popular or not. It is the only way to reach the standards. It will also offer more of these cars in China and the United States. 

Source: Spiegel