As mentioned in our previous article about that incredible E34 barn find including a gaggle of minty sedans and a touring, we at ECS would prefer to telling our own stories and offer an internal perspective to our readers. This week, we are going to break that tradition again. On January 14th, Volkswagen announced at the Detroit Motor Show that a new addition to one of their existing plants will be constructed, where 1,000 new jobs will be created to focus on their new Electric Vehicle production.
While this may seem far from ECS Tuning’s wheelhouse, you may be surprised to find this hits close to home (literally) for this writer. I may have spent my adult life and my early childhood romping around Nashville, but my formative years took place in a little town on the border between Tennessee and Georgia. Sometimes called River City, Scenic City, and most recently, Volkswagen’s home, Chattanooga, Tennessee is a special place to myself and its fine residents.
It is there in Chattanooga that Volkswagen opened a manufacturing facility in 2011, where they build the Passat and will begin production of the Atlas Cross Sport, a 5-seat version of their newest full-sized SUV. At the Detroit Motor Show, Governor Bill Haslam and Mayor Andy Berke stood beside the VW AG CEO Herbert Diess where they revealed the plan for the new production facility that will be the Volkswagen base of operations for their EV program in the United States.
This comes as exciting news for the people of Chattanooga who, in recent years, has experienced successful growth with companies like VW choosing the quieter, more bohemian, mountain city over sprawling metro hubs like Nashville, Atlanta, or Memphis. The plant will add about 1,000 new jobs where employees will focus on the new modular platform. This new MEB platform like the MQB used in 80% of the latest generation VWs, is a prime example of the manufacturer’s dedication to efficiency. The cross-model sharing aspects make the production and assembly of model variations much simpler and faster, which cuts down on emissions, materials, labor, and overall plant sizes.
Hopefully, the Electric Vehicle push includes the EV Microbus they have teased on social media for the last year. Regardless, the idea of more jobs and a stronger economy for Chattanooga has this writer feeling exceptionally proud of the town in which he spent his middle and high school years.
So what does this really have to do with ECS? You may have read our earlier article about the Electric Future and what it means for an enthusiast. If you haven’t, go read our apology for EVs and see what we’re getting on about before you continue.
Now that you’re all caught up, we can focus on what these new production facilities in Chattanooga and the other cities around the world that will receive similar plants mean for us enthusiasts. With affordable EVs beginning to penetrate the market, we are sure to see speed freaks start to amp things up. US-based production will mean VW EVs from one of the best car makers will likely be attainable by the everyman. So, modifying these cars will likely happen quickly by some of the larger name companies and trickle down as they become less expensive to smaller operations. Ideally, VW EV performance will become a growing trend as we move towards fewer national emissions every year, satisfying our need for electric speed. You can bet ECS Tuning will be right there to help you make your VW EV even more astounding.
Of course, production isn’t set to begin until 2022, according to their press release, so we have some time before these cars start seeing the road. Until then, you can satisfy your EV needs with Tesla and their incredible customer experience.
