Joanne Benante poses with her new Passat, recognized Thursday by Volkswagen officials as being the 100,000th car manufactured at the Chattanooga Volkswagen plant.Volkswagen today reported that its July sales in the U.S. jumped 27.3 percent over last year with the Chattanooga-made Passat posting its best July ever.
VW sold 9,007 Passats nationally last month as VW has its highest overall July in 39 years.
"We're seeing the momentum continue despite a pretty competitive environment," said Jonathan Browning, Volkswagen Group of America's chief executive.
VW sales surpassed 37,000 vehicles for the month, with Jetta accounting for more than 11,600, the company reported.
For the year through July, VW's sales are 34.1 percent higher over the same period in 2011.
See more auto sales coverage in Thursday's Times Free Press.