• Production at the Anchieta plant in São Bernardo do Campo (SP) accounts for 57% of the 26.3 million vehicles produced by Volkswagen do Brasil in 72 years, the largest car manufacturer in the country.
• Anchieta is a complete industrial complex and a center for research, planning, and development of new products with the highest technology and innovation.
• Sales success: Anchieta produces the Polo Track, New Nivus, Nivus GTS, Virtus and Saveiro.
• Absolute leader: Polo has been the best-selling passenger car in Brazil for 3 consecutive years (2023, 2024 and 2025), in addition to being the leader among hatchbacks.
• Top 10: Polo, T-Cross, and Saveiro finished 2025 among the ten best-selling vehicles in Brazil.
• New era of electrification: starting in 2026, every new VW developed and manufactured in the South American region will have electrified versions. The brand will offer all types of hybrids: mild hybrids, hybrids, and plug-in hybrids.
• Confirmed: Production of the first vehicle using the MQB37 platform will take place at the Anchieta factory, featuring a flex-fuel HEV propulsion system.
• Anchieta has the SENAI Volkswagen, which has trained more than 7,000 students in 52 years and is a benchmark in education with practical and theoretical classes.
• Sustainability: The Anchieta and Taubaté plants were pioneers in the sector to incorporate biomethane into their energy mix. This action is part of Volkswagen's global decarbonization strategy, which aims for carbon neutrality by 2050.
• Opened in 1959, the Anchieta plant was Volkswagen's first factory outside of Germany, marking the beginning of the brand's global expansion.
São Bernardo do Campo, February 9, 2026 - Volkswagen do Brasil celebrates the milestone of 15 million vehicles produced at its Anchieta plant in São Bernardo do Campo (SP). Inaugurated in 1959, Anchieta is Volkswagen's first factory outside Germany, initiating the brand's global expansion, and accounts for 57% of the 26.3 million vehicles produced by Volkswagen in its 72 years in Brazil, making it the largest automobile manufacturer in the country. Anchieta is a complete industrial complex and a research, planning and development center for new products with the highest technology and innovation, housing all areas of the company, including Design, Engineering, Way to Zero Center, Production, among others. From 2026 onwards, every new VW developed and manufactured in the South American Region will have electrified versions, and the production of the first vehicle with the MQB37 Platform will be at the Anchieta plant with a HEV flex propulsion system.
“We are very happy and proud to reach such an important milestone for Volkswagen. For each car to be born, the work of many people involved in each stage of the process is necessary, especially on the production line. Therefore, celebrating 15 million cars produced is also celebrating the effort and dedication of everyone who has worked here and those who continue to make history every day. We are excited about the new steps being taken, with projects that are already under development and that promise to further mark our trajectory,” highlights Leandro Oliveira, Plant Manager of the Anchieta factory in São Bernardo do Campo (SP), a unit that will celebrate its 67th anniversary on November 18, 2026.
Anchieta models are a sales success.
The Anchieta factory currently produces models that are sales successes: Polo Track, New Nivus, Nivus GTS, Virtus, and Saveiro. In 2025, Volkswagen registered a total of 436,336 vehicles sold in Brazil, reaching a 17.1% market share in the passenger vehicle segment. Three Volkswagen models finished last year among the ten best-selling in the country: Polo, T-Cross, and Saveiro.
The Polo, manufactured in Anchieta and Taubaté (SP), has been the best-selling passenger car in Brazil for 3 consecutive years (2023, 2024 and 2025), as well as the leader among hatchbacks throughout this period. In 2025 alone, 122,677 Polo units were registered in Brazil.
The Polo is also a success beyond borders. It was Volkswagen do Brasil's most exported model in 2025, with 32,579 units shipped and a 10% growth compared to 2024. Last year, 11 Latin American markets received the Polo, the main ones being Argentina, Mexico, Colombia, and Uruguay.
The new Nivus and Nivus GTS strongly contribute to Volkswagen maintaining its leadership in the SUV segment, the most important in Brazil. In 2025, VW sold 204,899 units of the new Nivus, Nivus GTS, Tera, new T-Cross, Taos, Tiguan, and ID.4 models. It's worth noting that the Nivus GTS is a sold-out model in dealerships due to its success. The new T-Cross remains the best-selling SUV in Brazil for three consecutive years (2023, 2024, and 2025), with 92,842 units sold last year.
With 44 years of uninterrupted production, the Saveiro is the pickup truck with the longest history in the Brazilian market, having already totaled more than 1.8 million units manufactured. The model combines tradition and robustness and continues to be a strong presence in the Brazilian market, having been among the Top 10 best-selling vehicles in the country in 2025.
Volkswagen's new era of electrification: the brand will have all types of hybrids.
From 2026 onwards, every new Volkswagen model developed and manufactured in the South American region will have electrified versions. The brand's portfolio will include hybrid vehicles in all possible forms: mild hybrids, hybrids, and plug-in hybrids. Each hybrid is designed to meet the different needs of Brazilian consumers and to make the most of the potential of national biofuels. It's the union of sustainability, autonomy, and performance.
And it's already confirmed: production of the first vehicle with the MQB37 platform will take place at the Anchieta factory in São Bernardo do Campo (SP), with a flex-fuel HEV propulsion system. It's worth noting that the Total Flex models will also remain in Volkswagen do Brasil's portfolio.
A benchmark in education: SENAI VW has already trained more than 7,000 students in Anchieta.
The Anchieta plant also houses SENAI Volkswagen, which has trained over 7,000 students in its 52 years and is a benchmark in high-quality education focused on the main demands of the automotive sector, with practical and theoretical classes.
SENAI Volkswagen was completely redesigned in 2025, gaining an even more modern, technological, connected, and welcoming area to offer excellent training to future generations.
The school offers two innovative training programs. The two-year program includes Industrial Apprenticeship (a diploma in Automotive Manufacturing Process Operator in the first year) and Mechatronics Technician (in the second year). In addition to classes focused on innovation and technology, students develop projects to improve industrial processes. The school also offers a new Mechatronics Technician program specializing in electric vehicles.
The SENAI Volkswagen structure includes Automation, Mechatronics Projects, and Automotive Technology Laboratories, with advanced IoT (Internet of Things) equipment (focused on communication and data exchange in manufacturing), 3D printers, and production simulators. Diversity is another distinguishing feature of SENAI Volkswagen, as almost 50% of the students are women.
Sustainability and innovation in vehicle development.
In line with Volkswagen's global Way to Zero strategy, which aims for carbon neutrality by 2050 worldwide, Volkswagen do Brasil was chosen to host the advanced Way to Zero Center Research and Development Center, inaugurated in 2022 in Anchieta, for the development of low CO2 emission technologies for vehicles. The Way to Zero Center team , in conjunction with other areas, evaluates technologies with the best commitment to environmental impact, as well as their viability, and also has partnerships with universities, institutes, and companies.
Also located in Anchieta is the Volkswagen do Brasil Design and Engineering Center . The company was the first to establish, in 1965, a vehicle development center outside its headquarters in Germany, encompassing everything from design to the start of production.
A pioneer in vehicle safety in Brazil, Volkswagen established its Vehicle Safety Laboratory in 1971 and conducted the first crash test in Latin America. The laboratory is located at the Anchieta plant and is a benchmark within the Volkswagen Group. Also located at Anchieta is the Volkswagen do Brasil Vehicle Emissions Laboratory , the first of its kind to be inaugurated in the country, in 1977.
The tool shop at Volkswagen do Brasil's Anchieta plant is a benchmark for quality, productivity, and high technical capacity. With an entrepreneurial spirit, the department supplied tools for the production of the Taos SUV in Argentina and Mexico. It also produced tools for Germany – including the 100% electric VW ID.4 and ID.3 –, Mexico, Argentina, China, and Hungary, and welding fixtures for countries such as Mexico and Argentina.
Volkswagen do Brasil also has Virtual and Augmented Reality Laboratories to support, in an innovative and fully digital way, the development of new vehicles, the creation of virtual prototypes, functional and visual evaluations combining physical and virtual elements, as well as ergonomic workstations for the production process. In these laboratories, simulations are carried out in a digital environment, optimizing processes, reducing costs, and achieving excellence. In this way, when the development vehicles or workstations are physically built, they have already been validated in the digital environment, ensuring accuracy.
Sustainable process: Anchieta and Taubaté are pioneers in the use of biomethane.
With sustainability in their DNA, the Anchieta and Taubaté plants are pioneers in the automotive sector to incorporate biomethane (renewable natural gas) into their energy mix. This innovative action is part of Volkswagen's global decarbonization strategy, Way to Zero, which aims for carbon neutrality by 2050 worldwide.
Since 2024, the two factories have received 1.35 million m³ of biomethane per year, but from 2027 onwards Volkswagen will reach a peak supply of 8.1 million m³ per year, with 6.5 million m³ going to the Anchieta plant and 1.6 million m³ to the Taubaté plant. The volume of biomethane acquired is mainly destined for the car body painting production process at both factories, allowing for a reduction of up to 99% in CO2 emissions in this process, compared to the fossil fuel alternative.
VW is the largest car manufacturer in Brazil: +26.3 million units
Of the more than 100 million vehicles already produced by the Brazilian automotive sector, more than 26.3 million units correspond to the production of Volkswagen do Brasil, the largest car manufacturer in the country, which has been investing in vehicle development and local production for 72 years, generating jobs and contributing to the economy. More than 200,000 employees have helped build the success story of Volkswagen do Brasil over these seven decades.
The milestone of 26.3 million units encompasses the production of Volkswagen do Brasil's three automobile factories: Anchieta (in São Bernardo do Campo, SP, inaugurated in 1959), Taubaté (SP, inaugurated in 1976), and São José dos Pinhais (PR, inaugurated in 1999), with engines manufactured at the São Carlos (SP, inaugurated in 1996) plant.
Investments of R$ 20 billion and 21 launches in the region.
Volkswagen believes in the strength of Brazil and the South American region and continues to be one of the protagonists in the sector's largest investment cycle to build the future of sustainable mobility. Volkswagen is investing R$ 20 billion in the South American region until 2028, with an offensive of 21 new vehicles for the region, of which 10 have already been launched.
Of this total, R$ 16 billion will be invested in Brazil until 2028, with an offensive of 17 new vehicles in the country, of which eight have already been successfully launched (New T-Cross, New Amarok, New Nivus, Nivus GTS, Tera, Golf GTI, New Jetta GLI and New Taos). The upcoming debut of hybrids is among the highlights.
Anchieta produced iconic models for the brand.
With the opening of the Anchieta factory in 1959, the nationalization of the brand began. That year, the Kombi had 50% of its parts produced locally, and the Beetle received 54% locally sourced parts. Thus, the models were made available at more affordable prices, democratizing the automobile.
The Anchieta factory was also responsible for producing several models that were a common sight on Brazilian streets and in garages, as well as in more than a hundred countries that received Volkswagen models exported from 1970 onwards. Among the iconic cars made in São Bernardo do Campo, in addition to the Beetle and Kombi, are the Karmann-Ghia, VW 1600, VW 1600 TL, Variant, SP1, SP2, Brasília, Passat, Gol, Voyage, Saveiro, Parati, Santana and Polo, among others.
Anchieta Timeline:
1959: Inauguration of the Anchieta factory, in São Bernardo do Campo (SP).
1965: Inauguration of the Development, Research and Design Center in Anchieta.
1967: VW completes half a million units produced.
1968: Production of the four-door 1600 sedan.
1969: Production of the Variant.
1970: The millionth Brazilian Volkswagen is produced (VW Sedan 1300). Exports of the brand begin.
1971: Inauguration of the Vehicle Safety Laboratory. VW is the first company to conduct crash tests in Brazil.
1973: Foundation of the SENAI Volkswagen Professional Training Center. Start of Brasília production.
1977: First factory in Brazil to inaugurate an Emissions Laboratory.
1982: Start of Saveiro production.
1984: Introduction of the first robots on the assembly line for the production of the Santana.
1986: Beetle production ceases.
1993: Resumption of Beetle production.
1994: Production of the new Gol begins at the Anchieta plant.
1996: ISO 9001 Certification.
2001: Anchieta celebrates 10 million vehicles produced.
2002: Inauguration of the new Anchieta plant for the Polo production facility.
2005: Anchieta receives ISO 14001 certification (Environmental Management System).
2016: Anchieta begins production of the New Gol and New Saveiro.
2017: The New Volkswagen era begins with the production of the New Polo, inaugurating the MQB modular platform in Brazil, a benchmark within the Volkswagen Group.
2018: Production of the Virtus begins, the first car in Latin America with artificial intelligence. Anchieta receives ISO 50001 certification (Energy Management System).
2019: Inauguration of the Virtual Prototype Laboratory.
2020: Launch of the Nivus, the first model 100% developed in the South American region to be produced and sold in Europe (under the name Taigo).
2022: Inauguration of the Way to Zero Center for research and development of low CO2 emission technologies for vehicles.
2023: Volkswagen do Brasil celebrates its 70th anniversary and begins its electrification offensive with the launch of the ID.4 SUV - presented for the first time in Anchieta, on the company's anniversary (March 23) - and the ID.Buzz (electric Kombi).
2024: Volkswagen announces investments of R$ 16 billion, with R$ 13 billion earmarked for its São Paulo plants. Anchieta and Taubaté are pioneers in the use of biomethane in their energy matrix, allowing for a reduction of up to 99% in CO2 emissions in part of the production process.
2025: Volkswagen expands investments to R$ 20 billion in South America with an offensive of 21 launches in the region by 2028. Of this total, R$ 16 billion is being invested in Brazil, with an offensive of 17 launches by 2028. At an event in Anchieta in October, Volkswagen announced its new era of electrification: from 2026, every new VW model developed and manufactured in the South American Region will have electrified versions. The brand will have hybrid vehicles in all modalities: mild hybrids, hybrids, and plug-in hybrids. The production of the first vehicle with the MQB37 Platform will be at the Anchieta factory, with a flex-fuel HEV propulsion system.
2026: Anchieta reaches 15 million vehicles produced.
Volkswagen do Brasil's production milestones (in vehicle units)
July 1970: 1,000,000
November 1979: 5,000,000
May 1994: 10,000,000
May 2005: 15,000,000
May 2012: 20,000,000
June 2023: 25,000,000
August 2025: 26,000,000
Production from factories in Brazil:
Anchieta: 15 million vehicles
Taubaté: 8 million vehicles
São José dos Pinhais: 3.2 million vehicles
São Carlos: 14.6 million engines
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