The Jetta brand of FAW-Volkswagen announced the official launch of the first model Jetta VS5 at the Chengdu Motor Show, this is a compact SUV with an official guide price of 84,800-112,800 yuan (~US11,921 – US$15,858), compared with the previously announced pre-sale price, the price of the entry model drops 5,000 yuan. Prior to July 18, Jetta announced the pre-sale price of the first product VS5 was 89,800-119,800 yuan (~US$12,624 – 16,842).
In February of this year, when Jetta just announced its “independence”, FAW-Volkswagen executives told us that positionof Jetta brand after “independence” will be lower than the Volkswagen brand, the price of its models would drop to less than 100,000 yuan.
On February 26 2019, the Volkswagen Group publicly released a new brand called “JETTA” in Wolfsburg, Germany. JETTA was the English name of FAW-Volkswagen’s first vehicle, the original Jetta model was upgraded to a new brand. Jetta was once one of China’s most well-known models, which refers to three models that have been selling well in China for many years, including Jetta, Santana and Fukang (from Citroen). Fukang has stopped production, but Jetta and Santana are constantly updating and maintaining vitality in Chinese market.
The data shows that Jetta’s cumulative sales in January-December 2018 is still 327,700 units, an increase of 0.5% compared with the same period in 2017. The cumulative sales volume is basically the same as 2017. After Jetta upgraded to an independent brand, FAW-Volkswagen hopes that the brand will be able to open up a broader consumer group to find new growth points. FAW-Volkswagen executive told that the Jetta brand will sell at least 400,000 units/year in 2021 after three years, the target consumers of the JETTA brand are the first-time car buyers who are 25-35 years old and who are pursuing cost-effectiveness and quality.
The Jetta VS5 was developed on Volkswagen’s latest MQB platform, which means it can be used in the most advanced manufacturing processes. As a result, the Jetta VS5 uses the same Volkswagen EA211 1.4T turbocharged engine, matched 6AT gearbox, generating 117kw(157hp), max. torque of 256N.m. Body size of VS5:4416×1847×1617ｍｍ, wheelbase of 2636mm.
From the perspective of product configuration, Jetta fully borrowed from the Korean car and China’s independent cost-effective model. The Jetta VS5 features four-wheel independent suspension that is rare in the same segment, it is the first to standardize the ESP , the 8-inch color touch-control central LCD screen supports car networking and voice recognition, and brings more convenience and fun to travel. In the high-trim models, the Jetta VS5 also introduces ACC, fatigue driving tips and other advanced technology configurations.
The production of the Jetta brand was undertaken by the FAW-Volkswagen Chengdu plant, which was the first off-site factory in the FAW-Volkswagen layout. FAW-Volkswagen’s four new plants were completed and put into production last year. At present, the strategic layout of FAW-Volkswagen Changchun, Southwest, South China, East China and North China has been fully completed. The overall production capacity has increased by 900,000 units and the annual planned production capacity is 2.655 million units.
