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Volkswagen Group sales down 15% in pandemic year, but EV sales up 214%

FRANKFURT, Germany — German automaker Volkswagen said its global sales fell 15.2% during 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic but showed significant recovery toward the end of the year. The company more than tripled its sales of battery-only vehicles. Global sales for all of Volkswagen's brands amounted to 9.3 million vehicles. The fourth quarter showed a smaller decline of 5.7% and within that quarter the month of December was still further improved, showing a shortfall of only 3.2% from the same period the year before. Volkswagen said Wednesday that sales fell the most in Western Europe, by 21.6%, while China, the company's largest single market, was down 9.1% Sales of battery-only cars jumped 214% to 231,600 from 73,700 across all the company's brands. The company's electric sales leaders included the Volkswagen ID.3 compact, with 56,500, the Audi E-Tron SUV with 47,300, and the high-end Porsche Taycan with 20,000. Volkswagen said that its sales fell by less than the overall market, meaning it had slightly expanded its market share. “The COVID-19 pandemic made 2020 an extremely challenging year,” said group sales chief Christian Dahlheim. “The Volkswagen Group performed well in this environment and strengthened its market position." Volkswagen Group's brands include Volkswagen, Audi, Porsche, SEAT, and Skoda as sell as truck makers MAN and Scania.

Italy to offer Lamborghini 100 million euros to build Urus

The Lamborghini Urus' prospects for production may have just received the impetus they need as the Italian government is preparing to offer significant incentives to produce the high-end SUV in the country. According to a report from Bloomberg, Prime Minister Matteo Renzi's government is prepared to extend as much as 100 million euros (approximately $112 million) – but not in cash. That'd be a bit much for the borderline bankrupt national government. Instead the motivation is reportedly being offered in the form of tax breaks and other such incentives. In exchange, Lamborghini would pledge to hire 300 new workers to build the crossover. The Urus, for those who may not recall, was a crossover concept which Lamborghini presented way back at the 2012 Beijing Auto Show. We caught a closed-door glimpse of it in New York shortly before its debut and saw it again in Monterey the following summer. Ever since, the Bolognese automaker has been petitioning its patrons at Audi and Volkswagen to give it the green light, but the Germans have been dragging their feet at the prospect of investing the necessary capital to pull it off. Lamborghini is reportedly hoping to get a final decision next month, and the government incentives could help it make the business case to its parent company. While the Italy's terms would require final assembly to take place in that country, much of the work could end up being done at the same plant in Bratislava, Slovakia, where the Volkswagen Touareg, Audi Q7, and Porsche Cayenne are built. Bentley is expected to undertake a similar process for its new Bentayga, with assembly to be finalized in the UK. Related Video: Featured Gallery Lamborghini Urus Concept: Monterey 2012 View 10 Photos News Source: BloombergImage Credit: Copyright 2015 Drew Phillips / AOL Earnings/Financials Government/Legal Plants/Manufacturing Lamborghini Crossover Performance tax incentives

Lamborghini Urus production body revealed in spy shots

After years of concepts and teasers, we finally have a our first look at the production version of the upcoming Lamborghini Urus. While these spy shots don't feature much variety, they do give us a fairly decent look at the front and side of the new model. Although there appear to be a number of changes from the concepts, it's still undeniably a Lamborghini. The Urus appears to wear the new Lamborghini face, similar to that of the updated 2017 Lamborghini Aventador S. The shape is generally the same as the concept, but it's been tamed and pulled back slightly. The intakes in the bottom corners are far smaller than the concept, and the entire front appears far more blunt and upright. The headlights look about the same, but it's hard to tell for sure through all of the camouflage. Around the side we can see that the wheel arches, though smaller, are generally the same shape as the concept. The crease in the door is still present, but far less aggressive. The mirrors are totally different than the miniscule ones fitted to the concept. The bold, sloping BMW X6-esque roofline looks nearly identical, though the production car has been fitted with roof rails. Unfortunately, we don't have any pictures of the rear to tell how aggressive that roofline really is. Earlier this week, Lamborghini confirmed full production will start in April. That means we should see a final production version fairly soon. Look for a twin-turbocharged V8 and an a plug-in hybrid system in the final version. This may not be as tough as the old Rambo Lambo, the LM002, but it still doesn't look like anything else on the road. Related Video: This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings. Featured Gallery Lamborghini Urus spy shots Related Gallery Lamborghini Urus Concept: Monterey 2012 View 10 Photos Image Credit: CarPix Design/Style Spy Photos Lamborghini SUV