EconomyFinancialGoodbye Brazil… Volkswagen will now sell a T-Cross from...

Goodbye Brazil… Volkswagen will now sell a T-Cross from India in Mexico

Volkswagen presented a new T-Cross for the Mexican market. Unlike the one that was launched in mid-2019 imported from Brazil, the one that now reaches the windows of the German brand’s dealers comes from India.

At the end of February, a first batch of 1,232 Volkswagen T-Cross units left the port of Mumbai, India, bound for Mexico.

The change of supplier country means several adjustments in the characteristics of the vehicle. Unlike the Brazilian, the Indian-made T-Cross is slightly taller and longer than the previous one, has a rear light that comes on when the brake is pressed and a 1.0-liter three-cylinder turbo engine.

Edgar Estrada, director of Volkswagen in Mexico, said that this change will allow the brand to offer competitive prices. “A turbo engine is more expensive than a naturally aspirated one and bringing it from India allows us to keep prices attractive.”

T-Cross prices, versions and engines

Volkswagen offers six SUVs in the Mexican market. T-Cross and Nivus – a version with a coupé-type body of T-Cross – are the entry models to the range of SUVs of the German manufacturer.

Arnulfo González, Manager of Product, Price and Planning at Volkswagen de México, explained that the first two versions that will reach the Mexican market will be the top of the range: Comfortline for 449,990 pesos and Highline for 484,990 pesos. Both will have the 1.0-liter turbo engine.

In the following months, a Trendline version of 419,990 pesos will be available, which will be available with the turbo engine, but also with the MPI (or multipoint injection). In the second half of the year, Volkswagen will look to incorporate other more affordable versions that have the 1.6-liter naturally aspirated engine.

Gonzalez explained that the transmission that will be offered in all versions of T-Cross will be a six-speed automatic, with no option for a manual gearbox.

The ‘made in India’ gains ground

India has become a key supplier of vehicles for Volkswagen in Mexico. The Vento subcompact sedan, which is the brand’s best-selling model in the country, has been imported from India since its introduction in 2013.

Last year Volkswagen imported 38,233 units from India, a volume equivalent to 39% of its total sales in Mexico, which in 2021 totaled 98,436 units, according to Inegi data.

India is the largest supplier of cars to Mexico. In 2021, manufacturers imported 116,572 units from that country, of which a third were Volkswagen models. Other manufacturers that brought Indian-made vehicles in 2021 were the Hyundai Group (Kia and Hyundai), Suzuki, Ford and General Motors, according to data from the Mexican Association of the Automotive Industry.

For Volkswagen, and with the arrival of the Indian T-Cross, the units from the Asian country could represent around 45% of the total sales of the German brand in Mexico at the end of the year.

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