According to the Wall Street Journal, Volkswagen’s new CEO, Oliver Blume, has reviewed its plans for self-driving cars, and the former CEO’s planned Trinity model and new factory could face delays or cancellation. Foreign media believe this is the first sign that he will abandon some of Diss’ technology projects.
The sources said that Obomu may postpone this self-driving project and may cancel plans to build a new factory for the car near the company’s headquarters.
In a message seen by the Wall Street Journal, Obomu and Volkswagen brand CEO Thomas Schafer told employees, “We are using this opportunity to review all projects and investments and determine whether they are viable.”
Volkswagen said in March that it would invest 2 billion euros to produce electric cars with advanced autonomous driving capabilities at a new plant near its Wolfsburg headquarters, with construction set to begin in spring 2023.
The Trinity EV will be based on the Volkswagen Group’s latest SSP software-led platform, which Volkswagen says will enable L4-assisted driving, meaning the car will be able to drive with limited autonomy in some scenarios.
Some time ago, The Manager reported that Volkswagen had planned to put the Trinity EV into production at the new plant in 2026, but Blume wants to push it back to 2030.
The source said that Blume had to cancel some of the targets because Diss’ previous strategy for electric cars, software and new mobility products was too aggressive and many projects were “unrealistic,” while details of the changes are still being worked out.
Reuters also said Volkswagen management still plans to bring self-driving, long-range electric cars to market, adding that the question now is whether Wolfsburg needs new factories or whether the assembly lines at the main Wolfsburg plant can produce them.
In addition, Volkswagen plans to build a new factory at its new European plant near Berlin by using large die-casting machines and reducing the number of car parts to reduce production time, aiming to match Tesla.
Tesla says its plant in Glenhead near Berlin can already produce the Model Y in 10 hours, while the Volkswagen ID.3 could take up to three times that number.
