Last weekend, automobile enthusiasts especially Volkswagen loyalists trooped to the Greenbelt Park where various aspects of the Volkswagen brand were showcased through special booths such as Brand & Heritage Gallery, Think Blue photo booth, Racing Pavilion, Innovations Zone, etc. for a well-attended 2-day exhibition.
With the slogan of “The Time is Now,” the Volkswagen-Ayala Corporation event that marks the much-awaited return of the iconic brand which is also called People’s Car.
During the launch the initial model line-up composed of the Jetta, Touran, Tiguan, Toureg and the 21st Century VW Beetle was joined by the soon to be launched Phaeton, Golf, CC, Polo Hatchback and the Beetle Cabriolet. Aside from the “larger than life” screen projections of these models, each was driven on to the stage for everyone to see “in the flesh.” Aside from the flashy Volkswagen models, most of which compose the initial line up of remarkable automobiles to be made available to local market, two VIPs also hugged the limelight during the early evening event that was attended by many invited local auto industry executives—local business tycoon Mr. Fernando Zobel de Ayala, president and coo of Ayala Corporation, VW’s Philippine partner and Mr. Weiming Soh, evp Volkswagen AG and president Commercial Operations of Greater China and ASEAN. Midway during the event the two top executives dramatically drove into the stage aboard two distinct models of the iconic Volkswagen Beetle—the VW Classic and the 21st Century version. Both delivered their individual keynote speeches that extolled each other for their common decision to work in tandem to promote Volkswagen’s interests in the country.
Volkswagen is exclusively imported and distributed by Automobile Central Enterprises, Inc. (ACEI), a wholly-owned subsidiary of Ayala Automobile Holdings Corporation (AAHC), which also has in its investment portfolio the dealerships of Japanese brands Honda and Isuzu.
