During a discussion with VPCM's managing director (brand) Erik Winter, managing director (aftersales) Florian Steiner and brand director Roland Ooi at the company's head office, Winter announced that both the new Tiguan and facelifted Beetle will be arriving in Malaysia later this year.
He added that the company will introduce limited edition models based on the current CKD line-up, but will not be bringing in any hybrid models just yet.
Based on the recent unveils of the Vento, Jetta and Passat in Malaysia, the new Tiguan - but not the facelifted Beetle, will arrive in similar fashion starting with the entry-level Comfortline, Trendline and finally the range-topping Highline.
The midsized SUV uses the German carmaker’s Modular Transverse Matrix (MQB) architecture and was formally introduced at this year’s Detroit Auto Show with its longer and wider looks that can provide up to 57% more interior space than before.
It could also arrive with some goodies such as rearview camera, adaptive cruise control, forward collision warning, autonomous emergency braking (Front Assist) with pedestrian monitoring, blind spot monitor with rear traffic alert and lane departure warning (Lane Assist).
As for the facelifted Beetle, it's arrival should be one that's highly anticipated after having garnered a reputation for being a cute 'fun-to-drive bug' since its introduction in 2011. Although the Beetle isn't a full model change, there will be noticeable differences such as its redesigned bumpers, lights and interior among others.
The company also announced that following the recent opening of its 3S (sales, service and spare-parts) centre in Batu Pahat, there will be three more openings this year with Tebrau (February) next in line, followed by Permas Jaya (March) and Seremban (April) to increase its reach.
Currently, the company holds 1.2% market share with a total of 6,048 cars sold as of Dec 2016 - of which over 1,000 cars were sold by VPCM since taking over from Volkswagen Malaysia in Sept 2016.
All Volkswagen vehicles come with a five-year manufacturer's warranty, while a two-year Customer Care Goodwill programme applies to vehicles produced till December 2013 with a mileage of up to 200,000km.
