To prepare for production of the newly launched Golf, Volkswagen has analysed approximately 700 work steps at over 400 workshops to leverage existing efficiency reserves and made numerous process improvements to make sure the eighth generation of the bestseller can be built more efficiently than its predecessor.

Due to greater standardisation of plant and processes for the new Golf, ramp-up investments for a successful start of production have been cut by more than half compared with the model's predecessor. Thanks to Volkswagen's platform strategy, 80% of existing body shop plant and equipment can be re-used since like its predecessor, the new Golf is based on the Modular Transverse Toolkit (MQB).

Commissioning the new Golf, i.e. installing all data, is also now fully automated and carried out via a fast Wireless Local Area Network while the vehicle is still on the production line. As a result, manufacturing time for this process step remains unchanged even though the volume of data is higher. From next year, a new fully-automated generation of driverless transport systems will ensure the faster supply of material, a key factor in efficient factory processes. Body shop logistics will see a 7% improvement in productivity through the use of 23 transport robots.