VW’s Anhui plant likely no new electric vehicle models until 2028

According to insiders, Volkswagen Anhui, the Chinese majority owner of VW, plans not to introduce any new models in the ID. UNYX electric vehicle series in 2027 or 2028. The current lineup of four vehicles will therefore remain unchanged for now. Meanwhile, the joint venture with JAC is falling far short of its sales targets.

ID. UNYX 08 with Xpeng technology

Image: VW

Volkswagen Anhui, a company focused entirely on New Energy Vehicles (NEV), appears to have no new electric models planned for the next two years. The joint venture with Chinese manufacturer JAC does not intend to launch any new vehicles under its ID. UNYX electric car brand in 2027 or 2028, according to two people familiar with the matter who spoke to Reuters. A supplementary crossover model planned for 2028 is also on hold, they added.

This puts the loss-making joint venture in an unusual situation: while Chinese manufacturers are introducing new electric vehicles and model variants at increasingly short intervals, Volkswagen Anhui’s model lineup is set to remain unchanged for now. Reuters reports that management initially considered the four existing vehicles sufficient to establish the brand among young urban buyers and grow the business by 2028. However, demand has fallen far short of expectations.

Four models – three of which are only available starting in 2026

The four existing models are the ID. UNYX 06, the ID. UNYX 07, the ID. UNYX 08, and the ID. UNYX 09:

• The ID. UNYX 06 is a fully electric SUV coupe that was first introduced in 2024 as ID. UNYX without an additional model number, and it is closely related to the Cupra Tavascan.
• The ID. UNYX 08 is positioned as a larger electric SUV; it was released in April 2026 and is the first VW vehicle to use technology from partner Xpeng.
• The ID. UNYX 07 is a fully electric sedan that launched in May 2026 and also utilizes Xpeng’s technology.
• Another electric sedan, the ID. UNYX 09, was added in the fall of 2026 and was likewise developed in collaboration with Xpeng.

The model lineup was further significantly revised recently. In September, Volkswagen Anhui lowered the limited-time starting price of the ID. UNYX 08 to 189,900 yuan (approximately 23,000 euros), a reduction of 17.4 percent compared to the original starting price. In mid-October, revised versions of the ID. UNYX 06 and ID. UNYX 07 were released. Both models received additional LiDAR sensors for driver assistance features and new battery options. At the same time, Volkswagen reduced the regular starting prices by 20,000 yuan each. The ID. UNYX 09 finally launched on October 24 at prices starting at 179,900 yuan (around 24,000 euros).

Sales targets are far above previous levels

The gap between expectations and reality is evident in sales figures. According to data from consulting firm ThinkerCar, Volkswagen Anhui sold a total of 11,360 vehicles from the ID.-UNYX series from January to September. An internal document obtained by Reuters indicated that the company had planned to produce 33,000 vehicles for the entire year 2026.

For the coming year, Volkswagen Anhui is set to pursue an extremely ambitious goal: selling 128,000 vehicles from the UNYX series. This is also indicated in the internal document from late October. Whether this target can be achieved with the current lineup seems doubtful given past performance. This was particularly evident with the ID. UNYX 08: According to ThinkerCar, the electric SUV sold an average of only 267 units per month between April and August. Reuters reported that Volkswagen had initially projected 3,622 units per month.

The relatively low presence of physical dealerships also hinders sales. Reuters reported in October that Volkswagen Anhui had over 166 sales locations at that time. As a result, the company is trying to expand its distribution network and is working with selected dealers from FAW-Volkswagen to achieve this goal. Volkswagen China told Reuters that it is focusing on expanding and optimizing the dealer network of the joint venture to reach more customers and achieve sustainable growth.

Plant operating far below its capacity

Volkswagen Anhui was established in 2017 in partnership with JAC. At the end of 2020, Volkswagen increased its stake in the joint venture from 50 to 75 percent, thereby taking control of the majority. The plant in Hefei, eastern China, has an annual production capacity of up to 350,000 vehicles, but according to Reuters, it is currently far from utilizing this capacity. In addition to the ID.-UNYX models, the facility also produces the Cupra Tavascan for export. This vehicle will be the first in the EU since February 2026 to be subject to a minimum price rule, rather than the usual special tariff on electric vehicle imports from China. The internal document forecasts production of around 33,000 Tavascans for this year.

To date, Volkswagen Anhui has not yet generated any profits. Finance Director Arno Antlitz stated during the presentation of the latest quarterly results that the joint venture aims to reach profitability by 2030. Meanwhile, weak performance in China is putting pressure on the entire group: From January to September, Volkswagen sold nearly 1.3 million vehicles there according to data from China’s Passenger Car Association, which represents a 31.2 percent decrease compared to the same period last year. China’s overall market shrank by just under 22 percent during the same time frame.

Group remains committed to its aggressive China strategy

The apparent lack of new models from Volkswagen Anhui seems to contradict the group’s overall plans at first glance. Volkswagen had announced that it would introduce a total of 30 new so-called New Energy Vehicles (NEVs) in China by 2029 – across all three joint ventures with local manufacturers FAW, SAIC, and JAC. These include pure electric vehicles, plug-in hybrids, and vehicles with range extenders. Volkswagen Anhui, the joint venture with JAC, is also supposed to play a role in this effort. The ID. UNYX brand will remain competitive through model upgrades and technical enhancements, Volkswagen China told Reuters.

On Wednesday, Volkswagen also reported a record in NEV deliveries for its同名 brand in China: In October, sales reached over 28,000 units, 4.5 times the figure from the previous year. However, this growth is due to the broader range of models offered by various Chinese joint ventures and cannot be attributed to Volkswagen Anhui. Instead, developments there illustrate how difficult it remains for the German manufacturer to establish a foothold in the highly competitive Chinese market with a relatively small and bisher wenig successful electric vehicle brand.