PASSAT SALES
U.S. sales of Chattanooga-made Passat since diesel scandal:* May 2016 – 7,129* April – 5,629* March – 6,097* February – 4,380* January – 3,586* December 2015 – 3,596* November – 2,759* October – 8,116* September – 7,228Source: Volkswagen of America
The Chattanooga-made Passat posted its highest sales in eight months in May as Volkswagen tries to regain its footing amid the diesel emission scandal.
May sales of the midsize sedan were still off from a year ago, down 12.8 percent. But the Passat did better than the VW brand as a whole, which was off 17.2 percent to 28,799 vehicles sold in the U.S. last month, the automaker reported Wednesday.
Last month’s sales of 7,129 Passats were the best since October 2015. That was just a month after VW admitted it installed defeat devices in some diesel engine software to trick regulators that vehicles were putting out less pollution than they were on the road.
For the year, VW’s overall sales have slowed by 13 percent so far, the company reported.
Jesse Toprak, president of auto research firm carhub.com, said VW is trying to regain customer trust.
He said VW must “own the issues related to the diesel scandal and show they still have a quality product that’s a lot of value to consumers. It’s a psychological battle and getting them back into their dealerships.”
Glen Payne of South Pittsburg, Tenn., said he’d consider buying a Volks- wagen next time he looks at purchasing a vehicle, adding that he wouldn’t let the diesel scandal stop him.
“Everybody makes a mistake, though I think it was intentional,” he said. “I think they’ll make it right.”
VW’s small Tiguan SUV produced the best May results on record for the vehicle, with 4,394 delivered, a 42.7 percent increase over May 2015, the automaker reported.
“We continue to be impressed with the performance of the Tiguan in such a competitive segment,” said Mark McNabb, chief operating officer of Volkswagen of America, in a statement.
Karl Brauer, senior director of insights for Kelley Blue Book, said VW overall is still down “pretty far” from where its sales were a couple of years ago.
“They don’t have what it really needs, which is more SUVs,” he said.
But VW is moving toward putting the scandal behind it, and the company is counting on new products and an updated strategy to help lift sales.
A larger and less expensive Tiguan is slated to start arriving at dealerships this fall.
Shortly thereafter, the much awaited Chattanooga-made midsize SUV based on the CrossBlue prototype also is to hit the market.
“The new Tiguan and midsize SUV are much needed to boost sales,” Toprak said. The best-performing segment in the market are small SUVs, he said.
“Luckily, for a change, Volkswagen will have the right product that appeals to the market,” Toprak said.
Brauer said the new SUV product, especially the midsize SUV, will help tremendously.
“They’ll have that [Chattanooga] facility focused on that model,” he said. “They know that’s the type vehicle that will turn things around. I’m confident they’ll invest and promote that pretty aggressively with marketing. That’s going to be the basis of the turnaround.”
VW wasn’t the only brand to see sales drop in May, as most major automakers reported lower figures in the month over a year ago. U.S. auto sales were expected to drop 6 percent to 1.53 million cars and trucks, according to car shopping site Kelley Blue Book. And KBB says sales are likely to remain flat all summer.
Contact Mike Pare at mpare@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6318.