Volkswagen, which last year vied for the title of world’s largest carmaker, says it is on track to beat that performance with a new annual sales record – despite trouble getting vehicles certified for new European emissions tests.
Sales head Christian Dahlheim said Friday that “we are confident” 2018 will end with a figure slightly above the previous record from 2017, when the company sold 10.74 million vehicles.
FILE – In this Aug. 1, 2018, file photo Herbert Diess, CEO of the Volkswagen stock company, addresses the media during a press conference in Wolfsburg, Germany. Automaker Volkswagen says it is on track for a new annual sales record despite troubles getting vehicles certified for new European emissions tests. (AP Photo/Michael Sohn, file)November sales figures left Volkswagen with 9.92 million vehicles sold during the first 11 months. That was up 1.8 percent over the same period last year, when the company sold 9.74 million vehicles across its brands, which include Audi, Skoda, SEAT, and Porsche.
Volkswagen faced delays getting cars certified under tougher emissions regulations that went into effect Sept. 1, hurting sales in the period after. Dahlheim said the effect from those troubles was already fading.
Last year, the Renault-Nissan-Mitsubishi alliance disputed the title of world’s largest automaker with Volkswagen by selling 10.6 million vehicles and saying Volkswagen boosted its figure by including trucks that shouldn’t count as cars.