Despite a jump in Volkswagen sales last month compared with a year ago, U.S. auto sales overall lagged in January as buyers recovered from holiday spending sprees.
But the slowdown probably won’t last long.
January is typically the weakest month of the year for U.S. auto sales, and last month appeared to live up to that reputation. Sales fell 2 percent to 1.1 million, according to Autodata Corp. General Motors, Toyota and Ford all reported declines.
Volkswagen of America, however, reported a strong 17.1 percent jump in January sales over the same month a year ago with the Chattanooga -made Passat rising 64.2 percent year over year.
Passat sales totaled 5,887 units last month, sharply higher versus a slowdown in figures a year ago caused by the diesel emission scandal that forced VW to quit selling its diesel-engine Passats and enter into costly settlements with car buyers, dealers and regulators to resolve claims of illegal emissions on thousands of its cars.