Volkswagen of America, Inc. (VWoA) today reported 37,704 units sold in March, a 3.1 percent increase over prior year sales and best March since 1973.
“Last month marked our 31st consecutive month of year-over-year sales increases and our strongest March in 40 years,” said Jonathan Browning, President and CEO, Volkswagen Group of America, Inc. “While we are cautious in terms of economic outlook, we expect to see continued growth at a moderate pace in the months ahead.”
Jetta sedan, the volume leader for Volkswagen, delivered 12,872 units. Jetta SportWagen closed the month with 2,133 units, up 5.6 percent versus the prior year.
The Chattanooga-built Passat continued to deliver strong results with 9,521 units sold and best year-to-date with 25,909 units delivered. In March, 34 percent of the Passat’s sold were diesel.
The Beetle and Beetle Convertible delivered 2,599 and 1,483 units, respectively, for the month.
The Tiguan saw a significant increase in sales with 3,304 units sold, up 24.3 percent, marking the best March and best year-to-date ever for the vehicle.
Total sales of the Golf (including Golf R and GTI) were 2,854 units. The next-generation “A7” Golf will debut at the New York International Auto Show on March 27. The “A7” Golf is off to a strong start in Europe and received the prestigious European Car of the Year Award. In addition, last week at the New York International Auto Show, the vehicle was also named the World Car of the Year.
Volkswagen’s high-mileage, clean diesel TDI models accounted for 22.6 percent of sales in March, a 6.6 percent increase over the prior year.