It is possible that orders placed in the past may not be delivered this year.
The Russian invasion of Ukraine has added to the problems that the global chip shortage is causing for the automotive industry. These are not significant in comparison to the current humanitarian crisis in Ukraine. However, more and more automakers are experiencing production problems. Volkswagen has announced that it will no longer accept orders for its plug-in hybrid cars.
Automotive News quotes Germany’s Automobilwoche as saying that yesterday Volkswagen stopped accepting orders for plug-in hybrid versions the Golf, Tiguan and Passat. The company hopes this is a temporary move to make sure that all orders have been fulfilled and are delivered. This process could take longer than anticipated and might not occur until the end of this year.
A Volkswagen spokesperson told Automotive News that the decision was made because of disrupted supply chains in connection with the war in Ukraine. In an effort to stop delivery times from getting longer, the Wolfsburg-based brand joined Audi in freezing new orders of plug-in hybrid models. It is currently unknown how long Volkswagen’s plug-in hybrid models will remain unavailable.
However, it seems that this will not affect only the production of Volkswagen’s plug-in hybrids. Automotive News reports that the core plant of Volkswagen in Wolfsburg will be shut down between March 14th and March 18 while Zwickau, where Volkswagen’s electric cars are manufactured, will remain open until March 18. Supply chain problems are also likely to affect VW’s factories in Hannover and Dresden as well as those in Poland.
Porsche also stopped producing cars in certain plants earlier in the month. Production is expected to resume later this week. Russia is currently without Volkswagen and Porsche.