Volkswagen Chattanooga marks the 10th anniversary of first vehicle assembled

April 19, 2021 by Volkswagen

Volkswagen is celebrating the 10th anniversary of the first customer vehicle to roll off the assembly line at its Chattanooga, Tennessee assembly plant. On April 18, 2011, a Passat SEL in Night Blue Metallic equipped with a 2.5-liter engine, automatic transmission, leather interior and 18-inch wheels became the first customer vehicle to be assembled in Chattanooga.

'Our Chattanooga family began with the birth of our Passat,' said Dean Parker, head of manufacturing at Volkswagen Chattanooga. 'We all cheered as the first one drove off the line because we knew it was only the beginning. The successful launch of the Passat was greatly due to the hard work and dedication of this Chattanooga team, and it opened the doors for future vehicles like our Atlas and Atlas Cross Sport. Today, more than one million vehicles later, and as we are preparing to launch Volkswagen's first all–electric SUV, we take a moment to appreciate our success, as it all started with our Passat.'

The start of operations at the Plant capped two years of work to transform an industrial brownfield site outside Chattanooga into the world's first LEED-Platinum certified automotive manufacturing facility. Since then, Volkswagen Chattanooga has grown to employ about 3,800 people directly and assembled more than 1 million vehicles, while supporting thousands of other jobs in the region. More than 900 workers who helped assemble the Passat and were working at the plant when the first Passat left the line are still working there a decade later.

The Chattanooga plant remains among the most environmentally friendly automotive sites in the United States, with a rainwater-recycling system and a 33-acre solar park on site that provides a significant portion of the plant's power needs. Since the first Passat rolled off the assembly line, Chattanooga-assembled vehicles have been exported to Canada, Mexico, Russia, South Korea, and the Middle East.

The Chattanooga plant currently assembles the Volkswagen Atlas, Atlas Cross Sport and Passat, and it will also be Volkswagen's North American base for assembling electric vehicles starting in 2022 with the ID.4 electric SUV.

VW Chattanooga Key Milestones

July 15, 2008 Announcement of Chattanooga Factory

February 3, 2009 Start of Construction

June 4, 2010 Opening of Volkswagen Academy

August 23, 2010 1,000th employee hired

September 30, 2010 Opening of Supplier Park

April 18, 2011 First Customer Passat rolled off assembly line

May 24, 2011 Grand Opening of Volkswagen Chattanooga plant

July 29, 2011 2,000th employee hired

December 1, 2011 LEED Platinum certification of Plant and Academy

May 31, 2012 100,000th Passat produced

January 23, 2013 Power-up of Volkswagen Chattanooga Solar Park