Dozens of new Passats made at the Chattanooga Volkswagen assembly plant are seen parked outside the plant recently.
Staff photo by John Rawlston/Chattanooga Times Free PressVolkswagen reported today that its U.S. sales soared 35.1 percent in June over a year ago as its newly redesigned Jetta had its best month ever.
"We've been able achieve a volume in the first half of this year in what took us effectively seven months last year," said Jonathan Browning, chief executive of Volkswagen of America.
Jetta sales totaled 17,105 - a 88.3 percent increase over last year. Sport utility vehicles Touareg and Tiguan experienced 46.9 percent and 47.1 percent sales increases, respectively.
High-mileage, clean diesel TDI models account for 21.3 percent of sales, the company reported.
This week, VW's Chattanooga assembly plant started shipping its new midsize Passat sedan to dealers. The car is expected to go on sale on dealer lots in September.