Record for Volkswagen Passenger Cars brand: Annual vehicle deliveries top 4.5 million for first time

• 3.9 percent increase for full year 2010

• Group Board member for Sales Klingler: “Competitive position of Volkswagen Passenger Cars brand significantly strengthened”

Wolfsburg, 07 January 2011 - The Volkswagen Passenger Cars brand ended 2010 with a new record: 4.50 million up 13.9 percent from 3.95 million were delivered to customers worldwide for the first time in a twelve-month period. “Thanks to its innovative and environmentally-friendly new models such as the Touran and Sharan, Touareg and Passat, the Volkswagen Passenger Cars brand has come up with an excellent performance in a difficult market environment and significantly strengthened its competitive position,” Group Board member for Sales Christian Klingler said in Wolfsburg on Friday.

The Volkswagen brand reported substantial growth on key markets such as China, the USA, Russia and India. Over 1.51 million or an increase of 35.5 percent from 1.12 million vehicles were delivered for the first time in China (including Hong Kong) during the full year 2010. In the USA, 256,800 vehicles were handed over to customers or an increase of 20.3 percent from 2009 total sales of 213,500 vehicles registered. Russia, vehicle deliveries ran at 58,900 units up from 2009 sales of 39,500 units, representing a year-on-year rise of as much as 49.1 percent. Developments in India were also particularly gratifying, with the Volkswagen brand reporting a significant rise in unit volumes, delivering 30,300 from just a mere of 2,800 vehicles, in 2009 or more than ten times as many models as in the previous year.

Brand deliveries in the entire Asia/Pacific region during the last twelve months grew 37.6 percent to 1.65 up from 1.2 million vehicles, while the number of vehicles delivered by Volkswagen in the North America region rose to 406,400 or an increase of 17.9 percent as compared to 2009 sales of 344,800 units, and the brand reported a 2.9 percent increase in South America to 756,500 in 2010 as compared to 2009 sales of 735,100 units. Delivery levels in Europe remained largely stable, with the Volkswagen brand handing over 1.55 million vehicles, down 1.2 percent from 1.56 million vehicles to customers and therefore performing better than the overall market, which contracted by 2.5 percent.

source: Volkswagen Media Services