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VW's strong rebound

Posted on 01 January, 2018
VW's strong rebound

Volkswagen has rebounded strongly since admitting their complicity in the diesel-emissions scandal two years ago.  The German carmaker expects to produce more than 6 million vehicles by the year's end due to recent product introductions and a strong performance by several of its key nameplates, such as the Golf, Jetta and the Passat.  Those results only count VW vehicles and not those from family ties like Audi and Porsche - so we will have to wait and see whether the VW Group or Toyota will claim the full-year title of world's largest automaker by sales. VW says the Golf totalled nearly 1 million deliveries worldwide in 2017, bringing deliveries to date to 34 million across seven generations. The Golf hatchback lead its segment in Germany and Europe, while the wagon recorded the model's strongest year-over-year growth at 11 per cent. The Tiguan saw the brand's strongest sales growth, growing 40 per cent to about 730,000 units delivered globally in 2017, with China and Germany as its largest markets. VW also said it delivered about 150,000 Tourans, its European multi-purpose vehicle.  In coming years, the VW Group will increasingly turn its focus to developing crossovers, SUVs and electric vehicles. It plans to spend nearly $85 billion billion on EVs, autonomous vehicles and mobility services by the end of 2022. That includes $11.8 billion to develop and build electric and plug-in hybrid vehicles to meet EV quotas in China.