Volkswagen tinkers with plant in Brazil to prepare weapon against Strada

Volkswagen is preparing a new industrial reorganization in Brazil to make room for the serial production of Tukan, its future intermediate pickup. Between the end of 2026 and the beginning of 2027, the Virtus should leave the plant in São José dos Pinhais (PR) and start to be concentrated in Anchieta, in São Bernardo do Campo (SP), said Autoesporte magazine.

The change will allow the Paraná unit to be dedicated to the T-Cross and the unprecedented pickup, while the ABC Paulista plant will be responsible for the Virtus alongside models such as Polo Track and Nivus. In practice, Volkswagen will make a new change of positions within its national production network.

The move comes just over a year after the brand started assembling the Virtus also in Paraná. In that arrangement, part of the sedan’s production was moved to São José dos Pinhais to balance the occupation of the factories and accommodate other launches of the brand.

Now, the logic is reversed. The arrival of Tukan will require production space at the Paraná unit, which already manufactures the T-Cross. The new pickup will be one of Volkswagen’s main projects in Brazil in the coming years and will have the mission of placing the brand in a segment in which Fiat Strada dominates by far.

The reorganization is possible because Volkswagen’s latest national models share the MQB A0 platform. This base allows for greater industrial flexibility, with the redistribution of production among factories according to demand, the arrival of new vehicles or the need to reduce periods of idleness on the lines.

This strategy is already applied in other models of the brand. The Polo Track is manufactured in São Bernardo do Campo, while the other versions of the hatch are produced in Taubaté (SP). The division helped free up space at the unit in the interior of São Paulo for the production of the Tera, Volkswagen’s new entry-level SUV.

In the case of Virtus, production in Paraná began in a shared way with Anchieta. The operation involved sending the already welded bodies from São Bernardo do Campo to São José dos Pinhais, where the sedan went through stages such as painting, final assembly and inspection.

The new change also coincides with the final stretch of Saveiro. The compact pickup, one of the oldest names still in production at Volkswagen, is expected to be discontinued in the last quarter of this year. To build up stocks before closing, the brand increased the pace at Anchieta, with two shifts, overtime and biweekly shifts on Saturdays.