VW Golf Cabriolet production started at ex-Karmann facility

VW Golf cabriolet will be available with a veritable cornucopia of engines worldwide, including direct-injection gasoline and diesel options. Volkswagen also plans to offer a dual-clutch gearbox in some applications, and at least a few models will show up with BlueMotion badges on their bodywork.

Volkswagen has said that it will use the newly acquired Karmann plant to handle a variety of manufacturing tasks, including overflow production of Porsche Boxster and Cayman models. Right now, the facility employs around 1,250 individuals tied to the Golf Cabriolet project, but VW says that figure may swell to 1,800 in coming months.

The Volkswagen plant in Osnabrück covers the entire automotive process chain from vehicle development through tooling to production and currently has a workforce of some 1,250, and a total of 1,800 people will have a job here by the end of the year.. Apart from the Golf Cabriolet it is also planned to use the Osnabrück plant as an overflow facility for manufacturing the Porsche brand Boxster and Cayman models going forward. The plant has a total annual capacity of roughly 100,000 vehicles. Volkswagen will have invested approximately 300 million euros in the new Osnabrück plant by the end of this year.