Volkswagen Sends Out 500 Pink Slips At Chattanooga Plant — Passat Sales Not Cutting The Mustard

As the U.S. unemployment rate seems to bounce around, it's readily apparent that Volkswagen's Chattanooga, Tennessee plant is going to add to the mess. Unfortunately, initial forecasts for the all-new Passat were a bit too generous and now the oversupply of vehicle's means that VW has to tighten its belt a bit until sales start becoming more fluid.

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**Special thanks to PQ40 for passing the story along

Volkswagen is eliminating 500 contract jobs and reducing work shifts at its new assembly plant in Chattanooga, Tenn., to ease an oversupply of the Passat sedan...

..."We had too high expectations," Frank Fischer, the head of Volkswagen's Chattanooga operations, told the Chattanooga Times Free Press. "The pipeline is over-full from the facility to the dealers...

...Volkswagen sold 117,023 Passats in the United States in 2012, the plant's first full year of production, up from 22,835 a year earlier. It sold just under 26,000 of them in the first three months of 2013, a 6 percent increase, though sales fell in March...

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HughJass - 4/21/2013 4:16:29 PM

+3 Boost

Rebadge them as Hyundais and watch the Walmart crowd come a running.

MercBasher - 4/21/2013 9:48:09 PM

+4 Boost

Run a special edition that's "fully loaded" with options and call it the Audi America and watch the vehicles fly off the lots.

85bmw745i - 4/21/2013 11:35:28 PM

-1 Boost

I bought a new TDI SEL Premium and can't tell you how much IO love it, especially the fact that even with the cruise control set at 80 on my 540 mile trip to West Tx, I still averaged 41.8 mpg, didn't have to stop for fuel and still had over 1/4 tank left when I got there! It is well built for a mainstream family sedan and was much more fun to drive than any other sedan we looked at ( and we looked at them all). It has every option imaginable and fully loaded with every option only set me back $32k. Plus free scheduled maintenance and free roadside assistance for 3 years is nice. Sure I could have got a nice later model pre-owned BMW or Mercedes like I usually do, but for the first time I bought a brand new car with only 6 miles on it. My wife loves it.

85bmw745i - 4/21/2013 11:42:37 PM

-1 Boost

And it constantly exceeds its rated fuel economy by a considerable amount. Most cars have to be borderline hypermiled just to achieve their rated fuel economy.

94geo - 4/22/2013 8:09:18 AM

+2 Boost

Not surprised this is a very competitive segment, and a few competitors are newer are definitely better overall.

P4D4ME - 4/27/2013 11:28:56 AM

+1 Boost

What they fail to tell you in this article is that the temporary laborers that they did lay off will be paid through June. They also will receive compensation for accrued pto. Did you note that 100 of the temp. employees were given full time V.W. jobs. You tell me any other company that would do that. The over production was a gamble in the hope that sales would continue at the over anticipated rate so nobody would be laid off. The fact is the matket did slow but due to VWs commmitment to all its dtaff those people had an additional 6 months of income.They could have let all those temps go a long time ago with no compensation. VW is a good company and they make a fantastic vehicle in Chattanooga.