Volkswagen Group Off to Positive Start in 2016

847,800 vehicles delivered in January / 3.7 percent increase
Group CEO Müller: “Brands recorded rise in deliveries at beginning of year. Mixed developments on world markets.”

The Volkswagen Group delivered more vehicles in the first month of this year compared with the prior year, handing over 847,800 models to customers. Commenting on the January figures in Wolfsburg on Friday Matthias Müller, CEO of Volkswagen Aktiengesellschaft, said: “The brands recorded a rise in deliveries in January.” Müller continued: “Developments on world markets at the beginning of the year are mixed. The situation in Brazil and Russia remains tense, China is regaining momentum and the trend in Europe is generally stable.”

Developments on the overall Chinese market at the start of the year were particularly positive, with market growth running at around twelve percent. The Volkswagen Group and its brands put up an even stronger performance (+13.9 percent), handing over more than 400,000 models to customers and making January a record month. Never before has the Group delivered so many vehicles in China in a single month. This growth was a decisive factor in developments in the Asia-Pacific region as a whole (+12.0 percent).

The situation in the Americas was more challenging. The company delivered 61,100 vehicles in the North America region in the first month of the year, of which 36,400 units were handed over to customers in the United States (-7.0 percent), where the sales stop for several models with diesel engines had an impact. Deliveries in the South America region, where the general economic climate remains tense, declined appreciably (-32.2 percent).

In Europe, January was a more pleasing month (+1.8 percent). The Group with its twelve brands recorded a slight increase (+2.9 percent) in Western Europe. Deliveries remained stable in the home market of Germany (+0.4 percent). In contrast, developments in Central and Eastern Europe (-4.2 percent) continued to feel the effects of the tense situation in Russia (-29.5 percent). Increases in several other markets in the region could not offset the downward trend in January.
Overview of deliveries by the Volkswagen Group:

Deliveries to customers by markets	January 2016	January 2015	Change (%)
Europe	292,600	287,500	+1.8
Western Europe	248,600	241,500	+2.9
Germany	89,700	89,300	+0.4
Central and Eastern Europe	44,000	45,900	-4.2
Russia	9,700	13,800	-29.5
North America	61,100	63,200	-3.4
USA	36,400	39,200	-7.0
South America	36,500	53,900	-32.2
Brazil	23,500	38,500	-38.8
Asia-Pacific	427,100	381,300	+12.0
China	400,100	351,400	+13.9

Worldwide	847,800	817,600	+3.7

Deliveries to customers by brands	January 2016	January 2015	Change (%)
Volkswagen Passenger Cars	521,400	507,100	+2.8
Audi	143,200	137,700	+4.0
ŠKODA	91,600	87,000	+5.2
SEAT	27,700	27,700	+0.1
Porsche	19,900	16,000	+24.2
Volkswagen Commercial Vehicles	31,200	30,600	+2.1
MAN	6,800	5,600	+21.4
Scania	5,400	5,000	+6.1

Volkswagen Group (total)	847,800	817,600	+3.7

The post Volkswagen Group Off to Positive Start in 2016 appeared first on VWVortex.

from VWVortex http://ift.tt/1KKw5X7
via IFTTT

Watch: The Stig Drives (nearly) Seven Generations of Golf GTI

With Volkswagen announcing “major” updates to the Golf, it seems an appropriate time to look back on what we’ve had so far. And who better to guide us through the rich history of the most popular European car ever made than Ben Collins, the former Stig? Some say he’s never met a GTI he doesn’t love, and that he can’t grow any of his own facial hair. All we know is … Ben Collins is actually a pretty solid presenter. Working his way through seven generations of the GTI (skipping over the Mk6) Collins tells us a little bit about each one and matches each mark to its corresponding facial hair craze. The Mk1 GTI for instance, is light and quick, but can lose traction under hard acceleration (in heavy rain). Despite that, Collins calls the Mk1 a “pure gem.” The Mk4, meanwhile, is a powerful return to form after the perhaps too sensible Mk3. Collins ends in the only way he could, with the Mk7, which accelerates faster than a Lamborghini Countach and is all kinds of wonderful. Watch, ...

Watch: The Story of the Ads that Made VW Big in America

The ads for the original Beetle are almost as famous and well-loved as the Beetle itself. Looking back now it’s easy to forget, though, just how easily things could have wrong. A new short from Dial M Films tracks the history of those early Volkswagen ads that sold America on the people’s car. The story, of course, begins with the visionary agency that made the ads: Doyle Dane Bernach (DDB). As a popular agency for Jewish products, no agency was more aware of the implications of Volkswagen, and no one, it seems, was more skeptical of the brand than DDB. “Remember Those Great Volkswagen Ads?” from Dial M Films on Vimeo . William Bernbach, though, was adament that the firm take the client, probably as a way of attracting other lucrative automotive clients. Saddled with a client that he didn’t want, art director Helmut Krone says in the film that he originally came up with ads that were all wrong. Krone tried to do what other manufacturers did and was intent on selling the Beetle ...

Watch: The Zerouno Cruis’n USA

ItalDesign is drumming up excitement for its new supercar based around the same 5.2-liter Audi V10 that powers the R8. Naturally, it hit the road for a cruise around California last week to celebrate Monterey Car Week. There isn’t much in the way of V10 noise—which is a real shame given the sound it makes—but you do at least get a good look at the car inside and out in this video. With a body made entirely of carbon fiber and designed to be as aerodynamic and light as possible, ItalDesign figures that it will be good for a 0-60 time of just 3.2 seconds. “We put it our best skills into the production of the first car,” said Massimo Bovi, head of pre-series production, when the Zerouno was first unveiled in Geneva earlier this year. “Using some of the finest productions methods and engaging our high-skilled workers.” The car features clever aero tricks gleaned from single-seat racing, like a y-duct up front to improve downforce and turn-in. Available in a number of trim levels, the...

Vorderman Volkswagen

Search This Blog