The FAW-Volkswagen Automobile Co. Ltd., a joint venture between China First Automotive Works Group Corporation and its German partner Volkswagen AG, saw its 3 millionth sedan roll off the production line on Friday.

Guests attend a ceremony marking the 3-millionth car manufactured by Sino-German car joint venture First Automobiles Works Group Corporation (FAW)-Volkswagen Automobile Co. Ltd in Changchun, capital of northeast China's Jilin Province, on August 14, 2009. As a Golf A6 SOP rolled out Friday in the factory of FAW-VW Automobile Co. Ltd, the major passenger sedan joint-venture in Jilin made it to 3 million in the number of manufactured sedans, the first one to do so in the country. [Xinhua]

Winfried Vahland, president and CEO of Volkswagen Group China, hailed the 3 millionth sedan, a Golf A6 SOP, as "another milestone" in the 18-year cooperation between Volkswagen and FAW.

Since 1991, the joint venture, based in northeastern Chinese city of Changchun, has built Jetta, Golf, Bora, Sagitar and Magotan models for the Chinese market, as well as Audi A4 and A6 cars.

It manufactured 1 millionth car in 2004 and 2 millionth in 2007.

A German expert signs during a ceremony marking the 3-millionth car manufactured by Sino-German car joint venture First Automobiles Works Group Corporation (FAW)-Volkswagen Automobile Co. Ltd in Changchun, capital of northeast China's Jilin Province, on August 14, 2009. [Xinhua]

"The production of the 3 millionth sedan marks a new level in our cooperation and is bound to have positive impact on the stable development of the Chinese auto industry," said Xu Jianyi, general manager of China FAW Group Corporation.

"I hope FAW-Volkswagen can achieve its goal of manufacturing 1 million sedans a year at an early date," he said.

The joint venture sold a total of 513,000 units of vehicles last year, indicating a growth of 12.6 percent year-on-year. In the first half of this year, it sold 326,000 units, up 21 percent from a year earlier, according to the company data.

(Xinhua News Agency August 15, 2009)