Press Releases
08 January 2012
Volkswagen builds foundation for sustained success in 2011
- Year ends with sales up by more than 26 percent
- First profitable year since 2003 for Volkswagen brand U.S. sales operations
- 2012 Passat named Motor Trend Car of the Year
- Opening of the LEED Platinum-certified plant in Chattanooga, Tennessee
HERNDON, Va. — Volkswagen of America, Inc. (VWoA) closed out 2011 with a year that saw more than 320,000 sales, the launch of the all-new Beetle and the all-new Passat, and the opening of Volkswagen Chattanooga, Tennessee, the company’s first manufacturing facility in the US in over 20 years. The Volkswagen brand’s U.S. Sales operations*were profitable for the first time since 2003.
Volkswagen of America ended the year with 324,402 sales, up 26.3 percent over 2010. (For comparison, sales numbers in 2010 were 256,830 and 213,454 in 2009.) In the first full year of sales for the all-new Jetta, sales were 150,515, the best year ever for the car in the US. In only four months of sales for the all-new, 2012 Passat, it significantly outsold the previous year’s total, with 22,779 vehicles sold since its launch in September 2011.
The Chattanooga-built Passat also earned the distinction of being named Motor Trend Magazine’s 2012 Car of the Year. Emphasizing Volkswagen’s commitment to safety, the Passat is one of a record nine vehicles named 2011 TOP SAFETY PICKS by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety. Sales of diesel vehicles continued to gain momentum, accounting for over 20 percent of all Volkswagen sales.
The company’s commitment to customer satisfaction was highlighted by the J.D. Power Sales Satisfaction Index (SSI) Study, where Volkswagen moved up from 15th to 4th place among non-premium brands. This is the best performance improvement amongst all brands in the survey and the best performance for Volkswagen since the inception of the SSI report.
*Volkswagen sales does not include Volkswagen Group of America, Chattanooga Operations, LLC.
In April of 2011, Volkswagen Chattanooga began production of the all-new Passat, in a plant that has the capacity to produce 150,000 vehicles per year. In December, the manufacturing facility and the adjoining training center were recognized for their environmental friendliness with LEED Platinum certification—the only auto plant in the world to achieve such status.
“2011 was a critical year for Volkswagen in the US,” said Jonathan Browning, President and CEO, Volkswagen Group of America, Inc. “With our Chattanooga plant receiving Platinum LEED Certification, the 2012 Passat being named Motor Trend’s Car of the Year, our quality and customer satisfaction metrics improving, and encouraging growth trends, the proof points of German Engineering and our commitment to the U.S. market are all bearing fruit.”
The aim for Volkswagen of America 2012 is to continue to build on those fundamentals that allow sustainable and profitable growth. Volkswagen Group of America expects to continue the momentum in 2012 and aims to sell over 500,000 units, in 2011 Volkswagen Group of America sold 444,192 units, an increase of 23.3 percent
About Volkswagen of America, Inc.
Founded in 1955, Volkswagen of America, Inc. is headquartered in Herndon, Virginia. It is a subsidiary of Volkswagen AG, headquartered in Wolfsburg, Germany. Volkswagen’s operations in the United States include research and development, parts and vehicle processing, parts distribution centers, sales, marketing and service offices, financial service centers, and its Platinum LEED certified manufacturing facility in Chattanooga, Tennessee. Volkswagen is one of the world's largest producers of passenger cars and Europe's largest automaker. Volkswagen sells the Beetle, Eos, Golf, GTI, Jetta, Jetta SportWagen, Passat, CC, Tiguan, Touareg and Routan vehicles through approximately 600 independent U.S. dealers. Visit Volkswagen of America online at www.vw.com or media.vw.com to learn more.
