VW to launch CrossBlue CUV as it chases 2018 sales goal

VW execs have been on the fence about giving the CrossBlue the production nod since it debuted at the 2013 Detroit auto show, but last year’s poor sales results have forced their hand – with the company’s 800,000 unit sales goal in jeopardy, VW is desperately looking for a spark.

“Having a competitive crossover (SUV) would be a huge step forward for Volkswagen in the U.S.,” Juergen Pieper of Bankhaus Metzler in Frankfurt told Reuters.

Redesigned versions of the Passat and Jetta sedans helped VW grab a bigger slice of the U.S. market in recent years, but increased competition and a general lack of utility vehicles saw the automaker’s U.S. sales dip by 7 percent in 2013. The overall U.S. market grew by 7.6 percent last year.

VW is keeping quiet on the matter, but the CrossBlue is expected to be built at the company’s production facility in Tennessee rather than in Mexico. The SUV could arrive in U.S. showrooms as early as 2016.

Live photos by Chris Doane.

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