VW Group suffers significant losses by WLTP conversion

23. October 2018

Since all new cars have to be registered in accordance with the WLTP emission test method from September 2018 onward, the VW Group, and in particular its core brand Volkswagen, has suffered significant declines in car sales and sales figures. In comparison to the previous month, 18.3 percent fewer vehicles were delivered in September. Customers who have ordered a new vehicle have to accept long waiting times due to the delays in the WLTP test procedure and because the group cannot keep up with the time-consuming and complicated test process.

 

Looking back at the sales figures a year ago, the decline in Europe and Germany has been even more massive. Thus, 42.6 and 47.1 percent fewer vehicles were delivered. Due to the delays in the WLTP test procedure, the belts at the parent plant in Wolfsburg were also partially at a standstill and the company had to park unchecked vehicles on replacement parking spaces, including the not yet opened BER airport in Berlin. In addition, on the effective date of the new WLTP procedure on 1 September, only 7 out of 14 VW models met the requirements of the new emissions test. After sales records in the summer, however, the management of VW has planned for the decline in sales and is hoping to have recovered again by the end of the year 2018 from these difficult circumstances.

But also the trade dispute between China and the United States make the Wolfsburg-based company concern. The customers in China, what is now the most important single market of VW, are unsure due to the trade dispute and the threat of punitive tariffs. Fortunately, there was only a slight decline in sales in China, down 10.5 percent from the previous month, and 4.8 percent fewer vehicles sold in the US. Vehicles and components for the Chinese market must be labeled with the CCC logo of the China Compulsory Certificate (CCC certificate).

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