James Muir to become Chairman of the Board of Management of SEAT

WOLFSBURG / MARTORELL - 11 March 2009: James Muir (50) to become Chairman of the Board of Management of SEAT, S.A. (Martorell) with effect from September 1, 2009. He will succeed Erich Schmitt (62), who will assume new responsibilities within the Group. The Chairman of the Board of Management of Volkswagen AG, Prof. Dr. Martin Winterkorn, thanked Schmitt for his successful commitment and stressed: "Erich Schmitt has achieved significant progress at SEAT."

James Muir studied European marketing and is a recognized connoisseur of the automobile industry. Muir, a British citizen, started his career in the planning department of Ford UK. From 1994 to mid-2001 he held a number of responsible positions with Ford, finally as Head of Marketing Services. Afterwards he joined Mazda Europe as Project Director before transferring to Mazda UK as Managing Director. James Muir became Vice President Sales, with responsibility for sales at Mazda Europe in 2003, before being appointed President and CEO of Mazda Europe in 2005.

Erich Schmitt joined SEAT from Audi in 2006. At SEAT, he achieved significant progress in production and products: marketing expert James Muir will build on these achievements. Previously, Schmitt had been responsible for world-wide purchasing on the Management Board of Audi AG in Ingolstadt since 1992. From 1997, Schmitt also managed Audi's activities in China, where he laid the foundations for Audi's significant growth in China.