Volkswagen confident despite emissions scandal

Volkswagen plans to introduce more SUVs into the Chinese market in the next few years, which have remained popular in China this year despite its auto market's overall slowdown.

The automaker will produce new-energy vehicles in the country starting from 2016. Volkswagen said at this year's Shanghai auto show that it would locally produce more than 15 different models of plug-in hybrids or fully battery-powered cars in four years.

"We are confident the market will continue to grow. We will continue to offer our customers the right, environmentally friendly products," said Heizmann.

He said customer satisfaction always comes first at Volkswagen and that a key part of its China strategy is "people come first", also a theme of its corporate responsibility projects.

That is why, among others, Volkswagen has been involved in cultural and educational programs.

"Culture has a lot to do with education, with attitude," said Heizmann when he spoke of the Rain Room Volkswagen sponsored two months ago in Shanghai, enabling more people to have access to the innovative art installation.

He said the artwork by Random International also started the "Volkswagen Culture Wave", a China-specific cultural engagement program aimed at making art and culture accessible to the public at large to nurture creativity and innovation.

"At Volkswagen, we believe art and culture are fundamental elements of a dynamic society, inspiring design, innovation and creativity," he said.

Another initiative this year is a football program for kindergarten children in Beijing, which is designed to build a football culture among younger generations, as "they are the future of China", said Heizmann.

The grandfather of two proposed the child safety seats program in 2013 and Volkswagen has since been working with its joint ventures to promote the importance of using them in cars.

In 2015, the automaker is promoting child safety through the initiative in many cities across the country via road shows and seat donations.

Heizmann said what matters is not how many seats were donated, but to raise the awareness of parents, to make them to know how dangerous it is not to use child safety seats when driving in the car with their children.

Statistics show that those who use child safety seats account for just 1 percent of the total children in cars in China as opposed to above 90 percent in Europe and North America. Experts say it will take years to increase the figure to 30 percent in China.

"We have been in China for 30 years. We played an important role in developing the Chinese automotive business. And we plan to continue playing that role and being responsible for the next generation of automotive development in the country," said Heizmann.

"If you ask what my dream is, my dream is to prepare Volkswagen for a sustainable and successful future in China."

 

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