"In 2007 we announced that in the years 2008 to 2010 we were going to invest 2.4 billion euros [21.19 billion yuan] in China. This plan has not changed. We're sticking to what we decided a year ago," the CEO of Volkswagen Group China, Winfried Vahland said in an interview in Beijing.

 

Rather than add capacity, VW's ongoing investment in China will focus on new technologies and products, Vahland said.

 

These include:

 

-- Eight to 10 new or revised China-made models for launch in 2009 and 2010.

 

Launches already announced for this year are the Golf VI to add to VW's compact segment lineup, and the Audi Q5 SUV. The mid-sized Skoda Superb sedan will also be launched, bringing the total number of made-in-China models to three for the brand. No dates have been given for any of these launches.

 

-- Advanced gasoline powertrains.

 

Vahland says that 80 percent of future product launches from VW in China will offer Turbo FSI (Fuel Stratified Injection) technology as an option. This combines turbocharging and fuel injection with a smaller engine than usual to achieve the same power as a regular engine, but with lower fuel consumption and emissions.

 

By adding advanced automatic or duel clutch DSG (Direct Shift Gearbox) transmissions, VW says it can reduce the fuel consumption of models on offer in China by 20 percent.

 

Until last year, VW's favored green car technology was clean diesel. Because of government incentives, it now powers roughly half of all sedans sold in Europe.

 

The German carmaker was by far the biggest investor in an effort to persuade China to follow suit. It participated vigorously in a lobbying consortium called the Green Diesel Initiative and sponsored fleets of diesel-powered taxis in Shanghai.

 

The Green Diesel Initiative was disbanded in 2007. But Vahland rejects suggestions that VW has given up.

 

"The discussion is ongoing," he said. "It's an excellent technology, and we're introducing it to the U.S. In China it might take more time than we anticipated before the infrastructure needed to deliver clean diesel fuel is available."