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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.

Audi CEO Rupert Stadler: Ducati is not for sale

"Ducati is not for sale." Those words, attributed to Audi CEO Rupert Stadler, are about as clear and definitive as can be, and they reiterate a previous statement about the potential sale of the premium Italian motorcycle brand that was made in March of this year. "[Ducati and Lamborghini] belong to Audi and, together with us, have an excellent future," said Stadler. Thing is, Audi, as well-off and established as it may be, still falls under the Volkswagen umbrella. And, as you're surely aware, things haven't exactly been smooth sailing for the VW Group over the last several months. The German automaker has squirreled away billions of dollars in anticipation of the legal fallout that's sure to come from the falsification of vehicle emissions data, and that's going to leave the company strapped for cash. All of that bad news led to speculation that VW could sell off some of its non-core businesses. What of the future of the Scania and Man heavy truck brands? Those don't currently appear to be on the auction block, either. VW's continued involvement in the HD truck segment was announced as part of the brand's TOGETHER - Strategy 2025 plan, in which Volkswagen outlined plans to push further into vehicle electrification and vehicle autonomy. Related Video: News Source: Asphalt & RubberImage Credit: Malte Christians/AFP/Getty Earnings/Financials Audi Lamborghini Volkswagen Motorcycle Performance Ducati Scania

Report: Lamborghini Urus spells it 'Lanborghini'

Maybe Lamborghini was too busy making shoes. Maybe it was spending too much time on social media. Or maybe it was spending too much time reminiscing about the past. But somewhere along the way, a Lamborghini owner says, somebody accidentally typed "n" instead of "m," spelling "Lanborghini" on the Urus infotainment screen. Based on a report from Carbuzz, the misspelling on one of @TorontoCarNut's Urus screens was the first domino in a slew of electrical issues on the $200,000-plus performance SUV. The owner took the SUV into the shop to fix the misspelling, but numerous issues continued to pop up after the appointment. The Urus rear hatch no longer opens with foot motion, the rear courtesy lights no longer work, and Apple CarPlay doesn't work with WiFi, among other problems. The dealership reportedly offered to give the owner a brand new Urus to resolve the issue, according to this account, but he turned it down. It is expected that brand-new models will have issues during first runs, but it is nonetheless unfortunate to see these types of problems show up on a car that costs so much money and commands a high standard. Are any of the small handful of Urus owners out there reading this? If so, do you have a "Lanborghini" lurking in your infotainment system? This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings.