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Volkswagen in the US
Volkswagen are one of the worlds biggest manufacturers and currently have the best selling car in Europe within its ranks. However, the likes of the Volkswagen Golf and the Volkswagen Passat are yet to confirm anything concrete in terms of sales within the difficult US.
The US Car Market is currently one of the largest emerging markets in the world and the likes of Jaguar Land Rover and other manufacturers have used the market well in terms of achieving sales. However, the main Jaguar rival Aston Martin have struggled in the last 12 months as the British based firm look to try and capitalise on the US market.
In terms of the UK Car Market, the German brand has been in the top ten consistently with both the Up and the Golf model but haven't quite managed to force the Ford brand off the top spot.
The mass market manufacturer, Volkswagen, has shown surprise at the take up of vehicles powered by diesel in the US, according to the chief of manufacturer's American operation, Jonathan Browning.
Currently, Volkswagen of America is the dominating manufacturer of light duty diesel vehicle's in the United States of America. The organisation holds a 72% share, which equates to around 90,000 vehicles every year. Until the end of October this year, diesel vehicles actually represented 22% of all Volkswagen sales in America, which exceeded the expectations the company had greatly. The key to this increase in growth has certainly been the oil burning Volkswagen Passat TDI introduction, which was the first mid size saloon diesel market in the United States. Jonathan Browning has explained that the assumption of the company going in, because many customers will have to be taken from Volkswagen's competitors, was that most customers would be tied down to their petrol power-trains.
He went on to say that the step in converting customers to Volkswagen would be a rather substantial one anyway, it would then be a much larger step to then convert the customers that were won, to diesel models. Browning also said that due to this being an extremely compelling offer, a nearly 800 mile range and with the typical driving profile of the United States, it is likely to get even better than fuel economies that are published, with the diesel, due to there being plenty of driving on the highway and customers are raving about it.
Browning went on to say that Volkswagen's forecast originally was for 17% of Volkswagen Passat's to be diesel sales, though it is actually closer to 30% in fact. He finished by explaining that the consumer in the United States if surely warming to the diesel vehicle notion. It is a very important part of where Volkswagen are in the vehicle market place.