Volkswagen Studying Tiguan SUV Production in North America to Lower Costs

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.

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Volkswagen Releases New Batch of Photos and Info on 2012 Tiguan Facelift

Little by little Volkswagen is releasing new information on its facelifted for the 2012 model year, Tiguan SUV. Today, the German automaker came out with a fresh set of photos and announced that aside from the styling tweaks, the European market 2012 Tiguan also benefits from additional features and three new engines including a more powerful 2.0-liter TSI gasoline unit with 210HP.

Volkswagen didn't reveal details on the two other new / updated powerplants, simply stating that there will be four turbocharged petrol units with outputs ranging from 122HP to 210HP, and three diesels producing between 110HP to 170HP.

The company added that new safety features such as the fatigue detection, Dynamic Light Beam Assist and Lane Assist systems plus a new XDS electronic differential lock have been introduced to the range.

The 2012 Tiguan will receive its world premiere at the Geneva Salon in early March.

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