VW is celebrating a production milestone, after building its 150th millionth vehicle since the company was founded 80 years ago.
The anniversary car is a Golf GTE, the range-topping plug-in hybrid version of the popular VW model and a symbol of the company’s future.
“150 million vehicles – that means we have made the dream of owning a car come true 150 million times for customers all over the world. You and your day-to-day work are the basis for this success. My colleagues on the Board of Management join me in thanking all Volkswagen employees – at all our sites. This anniversary would not have been possible without your commitment,” said Herbert Diess, CEO of the Volkswagen brand, to the team in Assembly Hall 12.
Series production for the VW brand started on December 27, 1945 with the Type 1 Käfer , the original Beetle, which was built 21.5 million times before its production finally ended in Mexico in 2003.
The VW Golf eventually surpassed the Beetle, with the 25th millionth example leaving Wolfsburg’s assembly line in 2007. By 2013, the number of Golfs produces had risen to 30 million and today VW has made more than 34 million worldwide.
VW is planning to launch 19 new SUVs by 2020 while the all-electric I.D. family will reach the market in 2020 as well. The plan is to have one million electric VWs on the roads by 2025. “In the present phase, it is vital that Volkswagen continues to develop successfully. Because we are a strong team, we get the job done, and we have a good plan for the future. We must consistently work on our performance in order to remain successful. Past success is no guarantee for the future”, Diess added.