"Earlier this month, Volkswagen unveiled the new Passat it will build in Chattanooga. Roughly 1,300 workers have been hired to manufacture the snazzy sedan," according to Atlanta Business News.

The article said that "On Jan. 10, at the Detroit Auto Show, Volkswagen rolled out its new Passat with a price tag starting at $20,000 and expectations that the car will help transform it into the world’s largest automaker. VW has the capacity to build 150,000 cars annually in Chattanooga, and the ability to add another 100,000 vehicles in the future… Fischer said full-scale production will soon begin with 2012 Passats hitting showrooms this fall…

VW hires 40-50 “team members” weekly. New employees underwent training last week -- practicing on skid and hanging lines, the paint and welding booths -- at the under-construction factory surrounded by the low hills of southeastern Tennessee. Like all new car plants, the assembly plant is quiet, clean, massive and robotic. An interesting feature: executive offices run down the middle of the factory…

Most of VW’s major suppliers operate from the automaker’s industrial park in Chattanooga. CEO Fisher said VW’s Jetta plant in Mexico and long-standing suppliers in Michigan will also service the plant."