Volkswagen has achieved a key production milestone at its Chattanooga assembly plant with the completion of its 1 millionth vehicle – an Aurora Red Metallic 2020 Volkswagen Passat R-Line.
The Volkswagen Chattanooga plant has been producing Passat vehicles since 2011. Ground was broken in 2009 for what was to become the world’s first LEED-Platinum certified manufacturing facility. Since then, Volkswagen Chattanooga has grown to employ approximately 3,800 people, produced more than 700,000 Passat vehicles and 100,000 Atlas vehicles, and started production of the 2020 Atlas Cross Sport and the facelifted 2021 Atlas.
In that time, Chattanooga-assembled vehicles have been exported to Canada, Mexico, Russia, South Korea and the Middle East.
Volkswagen Chattanooga will also be Volkswagen’s North American base for manufacturing electric vehicles starting in 2022. The $800 million expansion to enable U.S. production of long-range EVs began in November 2019.
The Passat marked Volkswagen’s return to assembling vehicles in America after the Westmoreland facility in Pennsylvania closed in 1987.
The 2020 Passat is available in four trim levels, with a starting price of $22,995 for the Passat S. A 2.0-liter turbocharged and direct-injection TSI four-cylinder engine that makes 174 horsepower and 206 pound-feet of torque is paired with a six-speed automatic transmission on all models.
Standard features include 17-inch aluminum-alloy wheels, full LED lighting, forward collision warning and autonomous emergency braking with pedestrian monitoring, blind spot monitor and rear traffic alert.
Source: Volkswagen Chattanooga