Doğuş Otomotiv Servis ve Ticaret AŞ and Volkswagen Group companies have signed a letter of intent to explore options for producing Volkswagen-brand passenger cars in Türkiye. The disclosure, published by Doğuş Otomotiv on Türkiye’s Public Disclosure Platform on the morning of October 30, 2026, establishes that the parties will examine possible production arrangements. It does not mean that manufacturing has been approved or that a binding investment decision has been made.
The KAP notice defines the scope as an assessment of options that could allow Volkswagen passenger cars to be produced in Türkiye. It identifies the parties as Doğuş Otomotiv and Volkswagen Group companies. The disclosure does not name any vehicle model, city, plant or production site. It also provides no investment amount, planned capacity, technology specification or date for the possible start of operations.
Doğuş Otomotiv said the potential cooperation is expected to offer value-added products suited to new technologies in the Turkish market and contribute to the development of the country’s automotive industry. That wording describes the company’s intended strategic effect. It is not a commitment to launch a production program, build a factory or provide a specific package of investment.
The filing was submitted under the category of a new business relationship and classified the Volkswagen Group companies as a supplier to Doğuş Otomotiv. Based on the company’s latest publicly disclosed financial statements, Volkswagen Group companies represent 40.35% of the relevant net sales or cost-of-goods measure and 52.12% of trade receivables or payables. The figures indicate the weight of the companies’ existing commercial relationship in Doğuş Otomotiv’s operations.
Reuters separately described the document as a letter of intent to explore the production of Volkswagen passenger cars in Türkiye. The news agency reported that Doğuş Otomotiv shares rose 10% in morning trading and were heading for their largest one-day increase since May 2025. That move reflects the market’s initial reaction to the announcement; it does not guarantee that the proposed production will proceed or establish the project’s eventual financial impact.
Volkswagen has considered manufacturing in Türkiye before. Reuters reported that the German automotive group abandoned an earlier plan for a Turkish factory in 2020, citing the COVID-19 pandemic and global economic developments. The new letter of intent does not automatically revive that previous project. The current disclosure confirms only that a fresh set of production options will be assessed.
Anadolu Agency and Turkish business publication Ekonomim also independently reported the central elements of the KAP filing. Both noted the absence of details on the scope and timing of any potential production. Ekonomim specifically reported that no model, investment size or production timetable had been announced and described the process as remaining at the evaluation stage.
The publication of the letter shows that the companies have placed the possibility within a formal corporate framework. The evaluation may still end with either a positive or negative decision. The disclosed document gives no duration for a feasibility study, no decision criteria and no financial obligations for either party. The development should therefore be read as the announcement of an examination process, not as the start of production.
The parties may ultimately examine questions such as location, product range, cost, technology, supply chains and investment structure. None of those details has yet been published, however. The verified development at this stage is therefore limited to a corporate-level decision to study whether Volkswagen passenger-car production in Türkiye could be feasible.
If the discussions lead to a final investment decision, a further public disclosure would be required to establish the project’s confirmed terms. For now, the letter of intent represents an initial exploratory step. Claims that production will definitely begin, that a new factory will be built or that a particular Volkswagen model will be made in Türkiye go beyond the information released by the companies.
