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47-747: Valmet Automotive has manufactured over 1.8 million vehicles at its headquarters in Uusikaupunki , Finland . Its largest shareholders are the Finnish state investment company Tesi and Pontos Group, each holding a 38.46% stake, while China’s Contemporary Amperex Technology Limited ( CATL ) owns 23.08%. Valmet Automotive has three business lines: Vehicle Manufacturing, EV Systems, and Roof & Kinematic Systems. In vehicle manufacturing, Valmet Automotive clients include Mercedes-Benz , Porsche , Saab , Opel and Fisker . Valmet Automotive has produced electric vehicles since 2009. In July 2021, Valmet Automotive

94-401: A town plan drawn up in 1649, there were 27 blocks in the town center that required residential buildings to be built. The town was built of densely red-soil houses, and the estates were not pleasantly considered deserted. The town also expanded around the base of the bay, where a suburban settlement was built. Green areas were not established in the town until the 1850s, when a new town plan

141-521: A Volkswagen convertible. The chaos of the war prevented the idea from being pushed forward, as well as the cooperation with Volkswagen from starting 15 years earlier. On 1 August 1949, Wilhelm Karmann signed an order from Volkswagen for 1,000 "four-seater, four-wing convertible Type 15" - the Volkswagen Beetle Cabriolet . Over the next 50 years, a total of 2,548,765 Beetle Cabriolets would be produced for Volkswagen. In addition to

188-453: A limited-series sports roadster. A notable canceled production includes Sono Motors' Sion , which was expected to begin production in late 2023 but was ultimately canceled. 60°48′32″N 21°26′45″E  /  60.80889°N 21.44583°E  / 60.80889; 21.44583 Uusikaupunki Uusikaupunki ( Finnish: [ˈuːsiˌkɑu̯puŋki] ; Swedish : Nystad , Finland Swedish: [nyːstɑːd] )

235-564: A total 891 Volkswagen T3 Karmann Coachbuilt Motorhomes - all produced in Karmann Rheine factory and not at Osnabruck as commonly believed. From 1978 to 1996, a total of 3,103 Volkswagen LT -based models were produced. These included the LT "M", LT "L 1", LT "L 2", LT "L Distance Wide", LT "L Distance-Wide Gold", LT "H Distance-Wide", LT "H Distance-Wide Gold", LT "S Distance-Wide" and the top-of-the-line LT "Distance-Wide Autovilla". In 1991,

282-433: Is 29.56 inhabitants per square kilometre (76.6/sq mi). The municipality is unilingually Finnish . Both its Finnish and Swedish names translate literally to "new town". The original name of the main village that was incorporated into Uusikaupunki was Kalainen (roughly translated from Finnish as "rich in fish"). The surrounding region, and especially the neighboring town of Kalanti, which merged with Uusikaupunki in 1993,

329-481: Is a town and municipality of Finland . It is located in the Southwest Finland region , 71 kilometres (44 mi) northwest of Turku and 97 kilometres (60 mi) south of Pori . The municipality has a population of 14,873 (31 October 2024) and covers an area of 551.65 square kilometres (212.99 sq mi) of which 49.04 km (18.93 sq mi) is inland water. The population density

376-620: Is assembling Mercedes-Benz A-Class and Mercedes-Benz GLC-Class cars. Furthermore, it produces the first commercially available solar-electric vehicle - the Lightyear 0 - as of November 2022. Today, Valmet is one of the largest and most significant employers in Uusikaupunki. The results of the 2011 Finnish parliamentary election in Uusikaupunki were: Uusikaupunki is home to the Bonk museum. Other attractions include: Karjurock ,

423-636: Is named after composer-clarinetist Bernhard Crusell , who was born in Uusikaupunki. The town of Uusikaupunki was founded as a town with the rights of commerce on April 19, 1617 by decree by Gustav II Adolf . In 1721, the Peace of Nystad was signed in Uusikaupunki, ending the Great Northern War between Sweden and Russia , but as the Crimean War broke out in 1853, Uusikaupunki was attacked by French Navy and British Navy in 1855 during

470-697: Is under construction and will open in 2022. Valmet Automotive also has sites for battery testing and engineering in Bad Friedrichshall, Weihenbronn, Munich and Turku (Finland). In 2010, Valmet Automotive took over Karmann's roof business and continued operations at the Osnabrück , Germany , and Żary , Poland, sites. In 2016, Valmet Automotive expanded the Roof Systems business to include Kinematic Systems. Kinematic Systems develops and produces spoiler systems that reduce fuel consumption and extend

517-772: The BMW 1 Series , and the Volkswagen New Beetle Cabriolet. The VW Karmann Ghia Type 14 is Karmann's best-known vehicle. Wilhelm Karmann Jr. conceived the idea in 1953, one year after taking over his father's car body company in Osnabrück. Karmann wanted to produce a sporty and open two-seater on the technical basis of the VW Beetle. Volkswagen was also interested in a sporty roadster that would be loved by American soldiers stationed in Europe and taken to

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564-776: The Chrysler Crossfire (2003) and Mercedes-Benz CLK Cabriolet (A209, 2003) were produced as complete vehicles. Production of VW's Vento/Jetta (1992/93) and the Golf Variant A3 (1997/99) also shifted from Volkswagen in Wolfsburg to Karmann in Osnabrück. From 1985 to 1989, Karmann produced the Merkur XR4Ti (an American-market version of the Ford Sierra for the Merkur brand); and from 2003 to 2007,

611-847: The Fisker Karma for Fisker Automotive from 2011 to 2012, and Mercedes-Benz models from 2013 onwards, such as the Mercedes-Benz A-Class (W176) , produced from August 2013 to 2018, and the Mercedes-Benz GLC-Class (X253) from 2017 to 2022. They briefly produced the Lightyear 0 starting in November 2022, but the project was canceled in January 2023. Valmet also produced the Valmet Raceabout ,

658-643: The Mercedes-Benz A-Class (W177) having started production in August 2018. Upcoming production will include the Mercedes-AMG GT 4-Door Coupé (X290), scheduled to begin in the third quarter of 2023. In the past, Valmet Automotive produced a range of vehicles, beginning with Saab models from 1969 to 2003. These included the Saab 95 , 96 , 99 , 90 , 900 , 900 Convertible , 900 CD , 9000 , and 9-3 Convertible . They also produced specialized Saab models like

705-478: The Saab 9-3 Viggen , and the long-wheelbase Finnish domestic market versions of the Saab 99 and Saab 900 (known as the "Finlandia" 5D combi-coupe and as the Saab 900 CD in 4D Sedan form). These models were favored by Finnish municipal and federal governments, as well as major Finnish industrial corporations, as official executive vehicles. From 1979 to 1987, Valmet produced vehicles for Chrysler / Talbot , including

752-874: The Simca-Talbot Horizon , Simca 1307/1508, (Talbot 1510) , and Talbot Solara . Between 1991 and 1997, they manufactured the Opel Calibra , and from 1996 to 1998, they produced the Lada EuroSamara . Between 1997 and 2011, Valmet worked with Porsche to manufacture the Porsche Boxster and Porsche Cayman . They also built the Garia electric golf car and the Think electric car (including the Th!nk City ) from 2009 to 2011. Other past projects include

799-533: The Åland War . Up to the 19th century, Uusikaupunki was an important port for commerce and fishing, and up to the latter half of the 20th century, the Port of Uusikaupunki retained an important ship-building industry. Uusikaupunki is the home of Valmet Automotive , a contract automobile mechanical production company, producing cars and vehicles for brands such as Mercedes-Benz . It was founded in 1968 as Saab-Valmet for manufacturing Saab cars. As of June 2017, Valmet

846-794: The Beetle Cabriolet and Karmann Ghia, all cabriolet variants of the VW Golf as well as the Scirocco , and Corrado were built by Karmann. The 1960s saw the expansion of the company and further vehicle plants were set up in São Bernardo do Campo (Brazil) and Rheine . In the years after 1965, complete vehicles and bodies of the BMW New Class Coupé , and its successor, the larger E9 , were produced in Rheine. Installation of

893-537: The Chrysler Crossfire coupe and convertible for Chrysler, at the time DaimlerChrysler. Many Karmann-built vehicles feature a small wagon wheel emblem, the coat of arms of Osnabrück , where the company was founded. A large part of the development of the Crossfire was done independently by Karmann, and the vehicle was produced at their Osnabrück facility. Karmann U.S. also supplied the top sub-assemblies for

940-836: The EV Systems business line, Valmet Automotive operates two battery pack production facilities in Salo, Finland, and in Uusikaupunki, Finland. The battery plant in Salo , Finland, started a large-scale production of 48-volt systems in 2019, and the expansion to include production of high-voltage batteries was completed in the summer of 2021. The battery plant in Uusikaupunki was opened in September 2021; high-voltage batteries for electric vehicles are manufactured there under one roof with vehicle production. A third battery plant in Kirchardt, Germany,

987-656: The Karmann Ghia Cabriolet and 1961 the bigger Type 34, the Karmann Ghia 1550, the design of which also came from Carrozzeria Ghia. In the quantities produced by Karmann, the Karmann Ghia coupés and convertibles were later slightly surpassed by both the Golf Cabriolet and the Scirocco; only when the first Karmann Ghia types were added together via the coupé and convertible was the Karmann Ghia

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1034-659: The Karmann motorhome design was updated and based on the Volkswagen T4 . The Gipsy and Cheetah models names were retained in the form of the Gipsy I (SWB) and Cheetah (LWB). In 1996 two new models were introduced namely the Colorado and Missouri. The Volkswagen Transporter (T5) -based versions were introduced in 2003. On 8 April 2009, Karmann filed for insolvency proceedings due to the sharp decline in demand for cars, and

1081-494: The Simca-Talbots were only meant for local consumption, although a clause in the contract allowed for the possibility of exports if parts made by the thirty local suppliers began to be exported to Talbot's main plants. Domestic parts content increased to thirty percent within a half year of manufacture commencing. In 1992, Valmet became the sole owner, and the company was renamed Valmet Automotive in 1995. From 1999 to 2010,

1128-770: The USA. Luigi Segre , the boss of Carrozzeria Ghia in Turin, was included in the plan on the occasion of the Geneva Automobile Salon. A chassis of the beetle was shipped from Osnabrück to Italy and Segre put a self-designed body on the chassis. To Karmann's amazement, Segre presented him in Paris not a roadster, but a coupé. Shortly afterwards, the automobile artwork was presented to the VW General Director back in Osnabrück. VW boss Heinrich Nordhoff liked

1175-399: The annual rock music festival has been held in Uusikaupunki since 2007. The town was co-host of the 1982 FIBA Europe Under-16 Championship for Women . Uusikaupunki is twinned with: [REDACTED] Media related to Uusikaupunki at Wikimedia Commons [REDACTED] Uusikaupunki travel guide from Wikivoyage Karmann Wilhelm Karmann GmbH , commonly known as Karmann ,

1222-462: The cars in Rheine with 280 horsepower (209 kW) 343 cu in (5.6 L) V8 engines. About 90% of the necessary components were shipped by boat from the U.S. All were SST trim versions and their name, Javelin 79-K stood for AMC's "79" model number and the "K" for Karmann. A small number of vehicles were also produced in Brazil (São Bernardo do Campo). The Osnabrück facility also produced

1269-933: The chassis and body panels of the Spyker C8 Spyder . The production facilities in Osnabrück, Chorzów , Poland, Yokohama , Japan, Sunderland , UK, Puebla , Mexico, and Plymouth Township , U.S. manufactured roof systems for convertibles including the Mercedes-Benz CLK, the Renault Mégane CC, the Nissan Micra C+C , the Pontiac G6 , the Chrysler Sebring, the Ford Mustang, the Bentley Continental ,

1316-454: The company's financial obligations. The employment protection contracts of the large OEMs with the unions and the technological progress in vehicle construction led to the fact that the production of niche vehicles was no longer outsourced, but rather carried out within the OEM production network. Volkswagen, Karmann's longtime partner, revealed on 24 October that it had made an offer to acquire

1363-594: The company. On 20 November, Volkswagen took over the factory buildings, machinery, plant and land from the Karmann insolvent estate. With the exception of roof systems, Volkswagen Osnabrück encompasses former Karmann divisions: production systems (metal group), press shop, body shop, paint shop, assembly and technical development. On 4 November 2010, Finland's Valmet Automotive signed an agreement to buy Karmann's roof-component sections in Osnabrück and Żary , Poland. Karmann's North American operations were sold in August 2010 to Webasto Group . Effective 25 February 2010,

1410-557: The convertible variants of both the third-generation Chrysler Sebring and Ford Mustang . Karmann assembled complete knock down (CKD) kits in an agreement with American Motors (AMC). In 1968, AMC introduced the Javelin , a new competitor in the U.S. " pony car " segment. AMC did not have a manufacturing subsidiary in Europe, therefore, Karmann assembled the American-designed car for distribution in Europe. Karmann built

1457-416: The coupé with its flowing lines and rounded shapes, so he agreed to build the car on the same day. In the first year of production, a total of 10,000 coupés were delivered instead of the planned 3,000 units. The VW Karmann Ghia became a sales success with over 360,000 units, even if the performance of the car with only 30 HP and 115 km/h top speed did not correspond to the sporty appearance. 1957 followed

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1504-739: The engine and final assembly were handled by BMW at the Munich plant. In the late 1970s and 1980s, Karmann produced the body shell of the BMW 6 Series Coupé and the convertible models of the Ford Escort as complete vehicles. From the beginning of the 1990s, the Ford Escort RS Cosworth , European-market Kia Sportages and from 1997 the Audi Cabriolet (type 89) and the Audi A4 Cabriolet (from 2002), as well as

1551-410: The expanding automobile industry. Karmann became known for its work on convertibles , coupés , and other niche models. After World War II and the reconstruction of the plant destroyed in the war, Karmann turned its focus on contract manufacturing and development for Volkswagen . As early as 1935/36, Ferdinand Porsche had asked Karmann to investigate the possibilities of developing a prototype for

1598-613: The luggage rack over the driver's cab. Approximately 1,000 units were produced through 1979. With the introduction of the Volkswagen T2/3 - also known as the (T3/Vanagon/Transporter/T25) in 1979, the motorhomes received a permanent overhead area with a bed for two people. Called Karmann Gipsy, 741 were made between 1980 and 1992. This number excludes 30 or more Type 3 Syncro models made between 1986 and 1989, and 7 Syncro 16" models made between 1991 and 1992. In addition 113 Cheetah T2/3's were manufactured between 1986 and 1990 to make

1645-549: The most successful Karmann vehicle. Since its beginning in 1901, Karmann built more than three million complete vehicles of the models as follows, exceptions as indicated: The first Karmann motorhomes were launched in 1974 based on the Volkswagen Type 2 'Bay Window' chassis. The bodies were of a sandwich structure. These motorhomes had two beds, kitchen, shower, waste water tank, rear body supports, leisure battery, toilet, water heater and gas heating. Options included

1692-405: The previous year. Its convertible roof components were purchased by Webasto , Magna Steyr and Valmet Automotive , while the Osnabrück assembly plant, vehicle development, tools and assembly systems were transferred to Volkswagen. Karmann was established in 1901 when Wilhelm Karmann purchased Klages, a coachbuilder founded in 1874, and renamed the business. The company then grew together with

1739-514: The production of the Mercedes-Benz GLC-Class was announced in November 2015. The GLC production started in February 2017. In March 2017, Valmet Automotive announced the manufacturing contract with Daimler AG for the next generation Mercedes-Benz compact cars. While the production of the GLC ended in 2022, Valmet Automotive announced a manufacturing contract for the Mercedes-AMG GT 4-Door Coupé . In

1786-447: The range of electrically powered vehicles. The product range also includes kinematic solutions for electric vehicles such as electric charging flaps. The Roof & Kinematic Systems business line's clients includes brands such as Mercedes-Benz , BMW , Mini (BMW Group), Bentley , McLaren Automotive and Porsche . Saab-Valmet was established in 1968 as a joint venture of Finnish Valmet and Swedish Saab-Scania . The automotive plant

1833-514: The sole owner was Metso , after which both Finnish Industry Investment (Tesi) and Pontos Investments bought 34% of the company's shares. On November 4, 2010, Valmet Automotive bought Karmann ’s roof-component sections in Osnabrück , Germany , and Żary , Poland. In January 2017, CATL became a 23.08% minority stakeholder in the company, the other shareholders being Pontos and Tesi (Finnish Industry Investment). Valmet Automotive's present production includes Mercedes-Benz models (2013-present), with

1880-526: The south of the Kustavi archipelago and ends in the north in the Merikarvia archipelago. The center of Uusikaupunki is built according to the so-called " grid plan layout" and is one of the best-preserved Empire-style wooden house blocks in the country. Today, there are a total of 40 blocks left. Because of this, the area is characterized by wide streets and large blocks with the narrow alleys. In

1927-428: Was a German automobile manufacturer and contract manufacturer based in Osnabrück , Germany. Founded by Wilhelm Karmann in 1901, the company specialised in various automotive roles, including design, production and assembly of components for a wide variety of automobile manufacturers , including Chrysler , Porsche , Mercedes-Benz and Volkswagen Group . The company was broken up in 2010, after filing for bankruptcy

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1974-528: Was already a lively marketplace for wooden objects and salt in the early Middle Ages . Uusikaupunki was founded to legalize this trade. Uusikaupunki is located in the Vakka-Suomi sub-region on the shores of the Gulf of Bothnia . The Sirppu River  [ fi ] ( Sirppujoki ) flows through the town and flows into the reservoir of Uusikaupunki in the northern part of the town. The freshwater pool

2021-562: Was built in 1965 when the bays of Velhovesi and Ruotsinvesi were dammed from the sea. The area of the basin is about 40 km², and the town and part of Vakka-Suomi get their domestic water from it. The acidity of the freshwater basin has caused some fish deaths as well as an overgrowth of aquatic plants . In 2011, the Bothnian Sea National Park was established in the outer archipelago of Uusikaupunki. The area, named Finland's largest marine national park , begins in

2068-506: Was located in Uusikaupunki, was destroyed in a fire in 1685. In the center of Uusikaupunki is the Bonk Centre museum, which houses a collection of products from the fictional Bonk Business Company . In addition, the town has a cultural history museum. A notable building in the town center is also Wallila , designed by F. A. Sjöström and located on a hill near the sea. It is now used as venue for Crusell Week music festival , which

2115-585: Was placed in Uusikaupunki , Finland , and assembled only Saabs for the first eleven years. Between 1979 and 1985, Valmet also assembled Talbots; a total of 31,978 such cars were built in Finland. Valmet was primarily interested in building the compact Simca-Talbot Horizon , but the French company required Valmet to also assemble the larger (and slow selling) 1307 before they would license the Horizon. Unlike Saabs,

2162-450: Was planned for the town. According to the Finnish Heritage Agency , the town's most significant public buildings are the Seikow's school building and the Uusikaupunki's library building. Seikow's Neo-Renaissance building was one of the oldest school buildings in Finland. The town library is thought to be one of the oldest functioning library buildings in the country; it was founded in 1861. The first glass factory of Finland, which

2209-431: Was selected to build long-range solar cars for Lightyear 0 , which was later canceled. Valmet Automotive also announced a manufacturing contract with Sono Motors for the Sion model in 2022, which was also later canceled. In July 2012, Daimler AG and Valmet Automotive announced a manufacturing agreement for the Mercedes-Benz A-Class for the Uusikaupunki plant, in Finland. Production began in August 2013. A contract for

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