Volkswagen Group Reports Modest Growth Amid Mixed Brand Performance in 2025

Volkswagen Group has delivered 6.6 million vehicles globally in the first nine months of 2025, marking a 1.2% increase from the same period last year. However, this marginal growth masks significant disparities across the German automotive giant's diverse portfolio of brands and regions, raising questions about whether this represents a meaningful recovery trajectory.

The current performance trajectory suggests the group is on track to deliver approximately 8.8 million vehicles for the full year 2025, which would represent a notable decline from the 9.03 million vehicles delivered in 2024 and the 9.24 million peak achieved in 2023. This indicates that despite the modest nine-month growth, Volkswagen Group faces ongoing challenges in sustaining its pre-2024 delivery volumes. 

The group's Brand Group Core, comprising Volkswagen Passenger Cars, Škoda, SEAT/CUPRA, and Volkswagen Commercial Vehicles, demonstrated resilience with 3.6% growth to 4.98 million deliveries. Within this segment, Škoda emerged as the standout performer with an impressive 14.1% increase to 765,700 vehicles, whilst SEAT/CUPRA contributed steady 4.1% growth.

However, the Brand Group Progressive, anchored by Audi, experienced a concerning 4.8% decline to 1.19 million deliveries. Audi alone saw its deliveries drop by 4.8% to 1.18 million units, continuing a downward trend that began in 2024 when the premium brand's sales contracted by 11.8%.

The Brand Group Sport Luxury, dominated by Porsche, faced a 6.0% decline with 212,500 deliveries. This performance is particularly notable given Porsche's historically strong margins and its role as a profit driver for the group.

Most concerning is the Brand Group Trucks/TRATON division, which posted an 8.5% decline. The International brand within this segment suffered a dramatic 28.2% collapse, whilst Scania deliveries fell 7.6%.

Geographically, Volkswagen Group's performance reveals the challenges of operating in diverse global markets. South America delivered the strongest growth at 14.9% to 481,800 vehicles, with Brazil contributing significantly to this expansion.

Europe showed mixed results, with Western Europe growing modestly by 3.2% whilst Central and Eastern Europe surged 10.2%. The group's home market of Germany recorded 4.6% growth, providing some stability.

However, two crucial markets presented significant headwinds. North America experienced a 7.8% decline to 708,800 deliveries, with the USA specifically down 9.3% in what the company described as "a challenging environment marked by the tariff situation". More critically, China—the group's largest single market—declined 4.0% to 1.97 million vehicles, reflecting the intense competitive landscape and the group's strategic repositioning ahead of new electric model launches.

The group's electric vehicle (BEV) performance provides a bright spot in an otherwise mixed picture. BEV deliveries surged 41.7% to 717,500 units, with particularly strong growth in Europe (+78%) and the USA (+85%). The group now commands approximately 27% of Europe's BEV market share, whilst its global BEV share climbed from 8% to 11%.

Leading BEV models include the Volkswagen ID.4/ID.5 (128,900 units), ID.3 (88,800 units), and various Audi e-tron models. This electric transition appears to be gaining momentum, with BEV orders in Western Europe increasing by 64% and accounting for 22% of total order intake.

Placing 2025's performance in historical context reveals the cyclical nature of Volkswagen Group's recent trajectory. After suffering a 7.0% decline in 2022 to 8.26 million deliveries, the group rebounded strongly in 2023 with 12% growth to 9.24 million units. However, 2024 saw a 2.3% contraction to 9.03 million vehicles, and 2025's trajectory suggests continued pressure on overall volumes despite the modest nine-month growth. 

Volkswagen Group Sales Performance by Brand (Jan-Sep 2025 vs 2024)

All figures in thousands of units except percentages