The Anchieta factory in Volkswagen do Brasil Located in São Bernardo do Campo and opened in 1959, this year it reached 15 million vehicles produced. The ABC São Paulo unit is responsible for 57% of the 26.3 million vehicles produced by the German brand in its 72 years in Brazil.
The company highlights that Anchieta is a complete industrial complex and also a center for research, planning and development of new products with increasingly high technology and innovation. Along with production, areas such as Design, Engineering and Way to Zero Center, among others, operate in the unit.
The brand’s other factories in Brazil were opened in the following decades: Taubaté (1976), São Carlos (for engines, in 1996), São José dos Pinhais (in Paraná, in 1999) and the parts and accessories center in Vinhedo (2004).
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The Anchieta factory currently produces models that appear among the best-sellers in Brazil, such as the Polo Track, Novo Nivus, Nivus GTS, Virtus and Saveiro.
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In 2025, Volkswagen recorded a total of 436,336 vehicles sold in Brazil, reaching a 17.1% market share in the passenger vehicle segment.
Among the more traditional models, VW highlights the Saveiro. With 44 years of uninterrupted production, the pickup truck currently has the longest history in the Brazilian market and has already produced more than 1.8 million units.
O InfoMoney created a timeline of the Anchieta factory, source of several of the brand’s iconic models. See some of the highlights:
Combi (1957)
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The first units of the Kombi arrived in Brazil just three years after its global launch, in 1953. The car was only assembled by Brasmotor (former owner of Brastemp) with imported parts – the more “nationalized” production began between 1956 and 1957. One year after the opening of the Anchieta factory, 50% of the parts were being manufactured in Brazil.
Beetle (1959)
The Beetle began to be sold in Brazil in 1950, but the car was dismantled from Germany and the assembly was also initially carried out by Brasmotor. This work was taken over by Volks in 1953. In January 1959, production of the Beetle began in Brazil, in a rented warehouse in the Ipiranga neighborhood, in São Paulo.
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Variant (1969)
The first version of the car, the 1600, had its name inspired by the designation of station-wagons by Volkswagen of Germany. Later versions introduced technical innovations copied from the Passat, such as independent McPherson strut suspension with a negative roll radius at the front, dual brake circuits (diagonal), standard radial tires and a rear window wiper. The Variant was produced until 1981 and sold more than 293 thousand units.
SP 1 / SP 2 – (1972)
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Officially launched on June 26, 1972, the VW SP was a sports “halo car” that marked an era. The SP1 had a 1.6L engine, producing 65 hp, while the SP2 was equipped with a 1.7L engine, generating 75 hp. With sporty and luxurious lines, the interior offered exclusive seats, as well as a single-piece console and central panel. The instrument panel, advanced for the time, had an oil temperature gauge, ammeter and clock.
Brasilia – (1973)
“A new stylistic trend for the Brazilian automobile”. This is how the brand presented the Brasilia to the public in June 1973. This iconic model for the national industry that popularized the hatchback segment in the country. With straight and balanced lines, the model inaugurated a new stylistic trend for the Brazilian automobile. In addition to the rational design characteristic of the modern European automobile industry, it seduced travel lovers by having a 135-liter front trunk, as well as an internal luggage compartment, which had 273 liters with the possibility of reaching up to 970 liters. The model was exported to more than 25 countries, including Mexico, Venezuela, Portugal and Nigeria. He left the scene in March 1982.
Passat – (1974)
The brand’s first vehicle in the Brazilian market equipped with front-wheel drive and a water-cooled engine, the Passat arrived in Brazil less than a year after its launch in Germany, bringing with it conceptual and technological innovations that were unprecedented at the time, in addition to the elegant design, designed by the Italian Giorgetto Giugiaro. The Passat introduced in the country the constant velocity joints, the body with controlled deformation zones in the event of a collision, the double circuit of ‘X’ brakes and the valve drive via a toothed belt. The model was manufactured in Brazil until December 1988. It returned to the Brazilian market in 1994, now in its fourth generation, produced in Germany.
Gol – (1980)
Officially presented to the press on May 15, 1980, the Gol was one of the longest-lived national cars still in production, only being discontinued in 2022. The Volkswagen hatchback was the most produced, sold and exported car in the history of the Brazilian automotive sector. With three official generations and at least 7 versions recognized by the market, the model sold more than 8.5 million units and was exported to more than 65 countries.
Saveiro – (1982)
The Volkswagen Saveiro was developed to transport cargo, but it has also become a distinctive vehicle for sports and leisure. The name was inspired exactly by a vessel that transports passengers and cargo, doing justice to the car’s functionality. With 44 years of uninterrupted production, the Saveiro is the pickup truck with the longest history in the Brazilian market and has already produced more than 1.8 million units. But it is being discontinued, to be replaced by Tukan in 2026.
Apollo – (1990)
The Apollo was presented to the Brazilian press in June 1990, at the Interlagos race track, in São Paulo. Called Project Nevada, it was developed by Autolatina Engineering, according to Volkswagen specifications. It was a medium model (positioned between the Voyage and Santana), with a three-box body, with two doors. With a sporty appeal, it had the AP 1800 engine under the hood in a transverse position, which differed from the Voyage, in which the engine was in a longitudinal position. The suspensions were independent on the front and rear axles. In 1991, the Apollo gained a special VIP series. It was manufactured until 1992 and had more than 50 thousand units sold. The model on display, year 1992, was taken directly from the production line in Anchieta and preserved as a zero kilometer in the Volkswagen do Brasil Collection
Polo – (2002)
Volkswagen’s compact hatchback has existed internationally since 1975, but in Brazil, the vehicle only began to be produced in 2022, after a redesign of the production line at the Anchieta factory. Currently manufactured both at the Anchieta unit and in Taubaté (SP), the Polo has been the best-selling passenger car in Brazil for 3 consecutive years (2023, 2024 and 2025), as well as being the leader among hatchbacks throughout this period. In 2025 alone, 122,677 Polo units were registered in Brazil.
Fox – (2003)
A genuinely “Tupiniquim” car, designed from the inside out and with a competitive price, but without deviating from international construction quality standards. These were the premises of the “Tupi Project”, which culminated in Fox, one of Volkswagen do Brasil’s biggest successes. Built on the modern PQ24 platform, from the fourth generation of the Polo, the Fox raised the level of drivability and construction quality in the category, which also served as a passport for several European countries. After two restylings (one in 2009 and another in 2014) and around 1.8 million units produced (500 thousand exported), the Fox said goodbye, after an 18-year career.
up! – (2014)
O up! It debuted in 2014 to be the brand’s entry-level car. Offered with two or four doors, it arrived in six versions, all equipped with a 1.0 three-cylinder engine with 75/82 hp and a five-speed manual transmission. The model’s mission was to be not only the first car for newly qualified young people, but also for families looking for a modern, safe, economical and good-performing compact. The model’s range expanded with the Speed up!, Pepper, Cross, Connect, and Xtreme versions before being discontinued in April 2021. It is currently one of the most valued used cars on the market.
Virtus – (2018)
The Volkswagen Virtus is a sedan derived from the sixth generation of the Polo and has already sold more than 300 thousand units in Brazil. It is produced in the Anchieta factories and, since 2025, in São José dos Pinhais (PR). Recently, the model was completely reformulated for more comfort, technology, sophistication and modernity options, in 2023, with a new, more imposing design and 100% LED lighting.
Groin – (2020)
Announced as the 1st ‘smart car’ in the country, the Nivus targets customers with an average age between 30 and 35 years old, linked to sports, technology, games, music, cars, gastronomy, travel and pets. The brand highlights the presence of a “digital island” in the model, with a configurable instrument panel and an infotainment center, entirely developed in Brazil. The model has an exclusive virtual store of applications that can be downloaded into the 10GB internal memory, such as iFood, Estapar, Porto Seguro, Waze and Ubook, among others.
