1959 Volkswagen Beetle With Semaphores And Air Ride!! on 2040-cars

Auto blog

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.

Volkswagen Group launches Truck and Bus GmbH

Volkswagen is not only one of the largest automakers in the world – it's also one of the biggest producers of commercial vehicles. Not just vans like the Caddy and Crafter, but proper trucks and buses. And now it's reorganizing them all under the newly incorporated Truck & Bus GmbH. The new division brings VW's two truck manufacturers MAN and Scania under one roof. MAN is, after all, wholly owned by Volkswagen, and in turn holds over 75 percent of the shares in Scania (as well as MAN Latin America). Along with Volkswagen Commercial Vehicles, they make the Volkswagen Group one of the largest truck manufacturers in the world, behind Daimler and Volvo (the truck manufacturer is separate from the automaker). Although VW Commercial Vehicles will apparently not form part of Truck & Bus GmbH (since it makes smaller vans more than trucks and buses), it will also report to Andreas Renschler, the Volkswagen board member in charge of the company's work vehicle operations. Renschler previously served in a similar role at Daimler. In a bit of a reversal – or a sign of things to come – Volkswagen CEO Martin Winterkorn (who just survived a failed overthrow attempt by ousted chairman Ferdinand Piech) will sit as chair of the supervisory board of Truck & Bus GmbH. Wolfsburg, 05 May 2015 Volkswagen creates integrated commercial vehicles group • Truck & Bus GmbH to become holding for commercial vehicle brands • Prof. Martin Winterkorn: "MAN and Scania will together become global champion" • Board Member for Commercial Vehicles Andreas Renschler: "MAN and Scania brands retain their independence" • Works Council Chairman Bernd Osterloh: "The holding strengthens employees' participation rights" Volkswagen is creating the integrated commercial vehicles group and thus putting in place a structured framework for business with mid-sized and heavy trucks and buses. Truck & Bus GmbH is to become the new Volkswagen Group holding for the MAN und Scania commercial vehicle brands. This was decided yesterday (Monday) by the Supervisory Board of Volkswagen AG. To this end, the shares in Scania AB held by Volkswagen AG will be transferred to Truck & Bus GmbH. The wholly-owned Volkswagen subsidiary already holds 75.28 percent of the voting rights in MAN SE. Truck & Bus GmbH will establish processes specific to the commercial vehicles business, thus leveraging the full synergy potential between the brands.

Import pickup truck-killing Chicken Tax to be repealed?

After over 50 years, the so-called Chicken Tax may finally be going the way of the dodo. Two pending trade deals with countries in the Pacific Rim and Europe potentially could open the US auto market up to imported trucks, if the measures pass. Although, it still might be a while before you can own that Volkswagen Amarok or Toyota Hilux, if ever. The 25-percent import tariff that the Chicken Tax imposes on foreign trucks essentially makes the things all but impossible to sell one profitably in the US, which lends a distinct advantage to domestic pickups. Both the Trans-Pacific Partnership with 12 counties and Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership with the European Union would finally end the charge. According to Automotive News though, don't expect new pickups to flood the market, at least not immediately. These deals might roll back the tariff gradually over time, and in the case of Japan, it could be as long as 25 years before fully free trade. Furthermore, Thailand, a major truck builder in Asia, isn't currently part of the deal, and any new models here would still need to meet safety and emissions rules, as well. Automotive News gauged the very early intentions of several automakers with foreign-built trucks, and they weren't necessarily champing at the bit to start imports. Toyota thinks the Hilux sits between the Tundra and Tacoma, and Mazda doesn't think the BT-50 fits its image here. Also, VW doesn't necessarily want to bring the Amarok over from Hannover. There is previous precedent for companies at least considering bringing in pickup trucks after the Chicken Tax's demise, though. The Pacific free trade deal could be done as soon as this fall, while the EU one is likely further out, according to Automotive News. Given enough time, the more accessible ports could allow some new trucks to enter the market.