Wolfsburg, Germany – VW cars, the core brand of the Volkswagen Group, recorded deliveries of 533,500 cars in January, 7.1 per cent up on the same period last year, the company said from its headquarters in Wolfsburg in central Germany.
In Germany, where the scandal surrounding toxic emissions from diesel-powered vehicles put a damper on sales last year, VW saw its deliveries rise 12.3 per cent to 43,300 cars.
The company’s Golf, Passat and Tiguan models saw a rise in sales of 9.7 per cent to 296,900 cars in its largest market, China.
Marketing head Juergen Stackmann referred to a “fast start in our second domestic market of China.”
Brazilian sales soared 43.2 per cent to 23,900 cars.
In the United States, where the scandal over software in diesel-powered cars aimed at manipulating emissions test data erupted in September 2015, deliveries rose 5.2 per cent in January to 24,700 cars.
VW’s new range of SUVs led the way, making up 52 per cent of VW cars sold in the US.