Volkswagen Pulls Ahead of Toyota in Global Sales, Despite Diesel Scandal

Cars and Drivers

Published: January 30, 2017 5:34 am

Last Updated: January 12, 2020 3:23 pm

Despite a scandal over the manipulation of diesel engine output that affected tens of thousands of cars and cost the Volkswagen CEO his job, the huge German car company sold more cars and light trucks worldwide in 2016 than rival Toyota Motor Corp.(NYSE: TM), which had held the crown as the leading manufacturer.

Reuters reported on the new global car sales leader:

Toyota said global sales across its Toyota, Lexus, Daihatsu minicar and Hino Motors Ltd truck brands rose 0.2 percent to 10.18 million last year from 2015. This was less than the 10.3 million sold by Volkswagen, which posted record high global sales despite its diesel emissions scandal.

VW was helped by several things. It remains the leading car company in Europe, by far. Its market share of sales in the EU nations is nearly 25%, although that share dropped slightly last year. It is also among the largest car companies in China, and often shares the top spot with General Motors Co. (NYSE: GM). China is the world’s largest car market, and of the 88 million cars sold worldwide last year, roughly a quarter were sold in the People’s Republic. The only large market in which VW is weak is the United States, where its trails all the largest manufacturers by a wide margin.

VW sales are helped by the fact that it owns Audi, Scania and a number of smaller brands, based on sales, most of which are in the luxury category. Toyota owns several brands as well, led by its Lexus luxury brand and Scion.

The sales crown does not necessarily mean the top spot in profitability. The VW scandal has cost the company billions of dollars. The probe triggered the departure of CEO Martin Winterkorn. Several other top managers left, and there are a growing number of executives from VW who have or soon will face criminal charges.

The label of number one car company in the world has not helped solve VW’s problems one bit.

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