Volkswagen Group of America, Inc. (also known as Volkswagen of America and abbreviated to VWoA) is the North American operational headquarters and subsidiary of the Volkswagen Group of automobile companies of Germany. It is responsible for six marques: Audi, Bentley, Lamborghini, and Volkswagen, and is the exclusive importer and distributor of Bugatti and Rimac cars in the United States. It also controls VW Credit, Inc. (operating as Volkswagen Financial Services), Volkswagen's financial services and credit operations.VW Credit, Inc. Volkswagen Group of America The company is headquartered in Reston, Virginia.
In Germany, the parent company Volkswagen AG is responsible for eight marques of the group, from six European countries: Volkswagen, Audi, Bentley, Bugatti, Lamborghini, Porsche, SEAT, Škoda and Volkswagen Commercial Vehicles.
As of March 2008, VWoA has 20 operational facilities spanning coast to coast. Its primary objective is "to offer attractive, safe and environmentally sound vehicles which are competitive on an increasingly tough market and which set world standards in their respective classes".Group Overview Volkswagen Group of America
On July 16, 2008, Volkswagen AG announced plans to build its first production facility in the United States since the closure of its Westmoreland assembly plant in 1988. The Volkswagen Chattanooga Assembly Plant was inaugurated on May 24, 2011, and initially built the US-spec Volkswagen Passat before starting production of the Volkswagen Atlas in 2017.
On December 12, 2024, Kjell Gruner became chief executive officer of Volkswagen of America, taking the helm from Pablo Di Si, who stepped down on his own request.
History Foundation Volkswagen of America was formed in October 1955 at 476 Hudson TerraceWeed, J. (Ed.). (n.d.). Automotive News 1961. Full text of “Automotive News 1961-05-15: Vol 36 ISS 3811.” https://archive.org/stream/sim_automotive-news_1961-05-15_36_3811/sim_automotive-news_1961-05-15_36_3811_djvu.txt#:~:text=476%20Hudson%20Terrace in Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey, to standardize Volkswagen's dealer service in the United States. Under the leadership of Dr. Carl Hahn, the organization expanded to 909 dealers nationwide by 1965. Under Hahn—and later his successor as president of Volkswagen of America, J. Stuart Perkins—Volkswagen's US sales climbed to an all-time peak of 569,696 vehicles in 1970, when the company captured roughly 7% of the US car market and supported more than a thousand American dealerships. The Volkswagen Beetle was by far the brand's best-selling model in the US. In the early 1970s, Volkswagen of America relocated from its original Hudson Terrace office to a newly constructed corporate office at 818 Sylvan AvenueGov, U. (n.d.). USPTO. Assignment center. https://assignmentcenter.uspto.gov/search/trademark/abstract%3FregistrationNumber%3D1162649#:~:text=VOLKSWAGEN%20OF,07632 , also in Englewood Cliffs.
From then on, however, intense competition from American and Japanese automakers caused VW sales in America to fall as much as 87 percent between 1970 and 1992, despite the introduction of new front-drive models in 1975 to replace the Beetle and its rear-engined, air-cooled stablemates. As a result, the number of VW dealerships in the US was also reduced to 630 by the mid-1990s. As of 2007, there were 596 operating Volkswagen dealerships in the country.
Westmoreland and Auburn Hills VWoA inaugurated the Volkswagen Westmoreland Assembly Plant near New Stanton, Pennsylvania, in 1978. This was the first modern venture by a foreign automaker at making cars in the United States. In 1988, the plant was closed. In the early 1980s, the manufacturing division and the sales division were merged, and Volkswagen of America moved to Troy, Michigan, as a result, settling in Auburn Hills, Michigan, in 1991 ().
1990s uncertainties Volkswagen of America's sales hit bottomed out in 1993, with fewer than 50,000 cars sold that year. Sales began to recover the following year with the introduction of the third generation of the Golf and Jetta. By the end of the decade, thanks to effective advertising and the launch of more competitive new products, including the New Beetle in 1997, the VW brand was back on firmer ground. Volkswagen of America went on to sell 355,648 cars in 2001, its best year since 1973.
2000s In the 2000s, sales tapered off somewhat due to competition, quality issues, and delays in product introductions. VW's US sales for 2005 totaled 224,195, a reduction of about 37 percent from four years earlier. New models for the 2006 and 2007 model years, such as the Passat, Rabbit, and GTI, resulted in a sales growth of 4.9% for 2006, with sales of 235,140 vehicles. Profitability still remained an issue, as Volkswagen of America had not turned a profit for its parent company since 2002. In January 2007, Volkswagen of America president Adrian Hallmark publicly stated that he planned to get the subsidiary back to profitability in two to three years. He hoped to introduce new models for North America and develop new marketing to encompass the whole brand, as well as individual cars. Stefan Jacoby soon replaced him, and Volkswagen of America continued to look at new products to add to its lineup.
In the meantime, advertising agency Crispin Porter + Bogusky helped rejuvenate VW's presence in the US as well. Its ads for the fifth-generation GTI sparked interest in the brand that had not been seen since the launch of the New Beetle, and ads for the fifth-generation Golf/Rabbit hatchback translated into initial strong sales for that model. Due to new air pollution rules promulgated by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), the diesel powered VWs with TDI-PD technology could no longer be produced after December 31, 2006. For the 2009 model year, VW introduced a new generation of diesels, based on common rail technology. These would meet air pollution standards in all 50 states. The first of these units was made available for sale in August 2008. VW sold 2,050 Jetta Sedan TDIs and 361 Jetta Sportwagen TDIs that first month. However, the company was later charged with three felonies and fined $25 billion for defrauding the US government when it was discovered that their vehicles were only passing laboratory emissions testing due to company tampering of their system's internal software.
In October 2009, Deutsch LA, the ad agency of renowned ad man Donny Deutsch, won Volkswagen's American advertising account, fourteen years after Deutsch had tried for VW's advertising business against Arnold Advertising. www.forbes.com
New headquarters in Virginia On September 6, 2007, Volkswagen of America announced that it would relocate its North American headquarters to Herndon, Virginia. Volkswagen sales were particularly strong in the Mid-Atlantic region, as well as both coasts. The company indicated that it was important for them to locate in a region where their customer base is strongest. Presently, the Big Three domestic brands dominate the Midwestern United States, especially Detroit, where the company was formerly located.
Volkswagen of America began its move from Auburn Hills to Herndon in April 2008. The company anticipated that 600 of the 1,400 staff would remain at Auburn Hills in the call center and technical services positions, while 400 jobs would transferred to Virginia. Volkswagen of America President and CEO Stefan Jacoby said that about 150 employees in Michigan were expected to move to Herndon; the 400 remaining jobs were to be cut.
The state of Virginia, which was among 14 locations that Volkswagen of America considered for the move, offered Volkswagen $6 million in incentives that will be awarded pending Volkswagen's fulfillment of employment and other various quotas.
Volkswagen moved its North American headquarters from Herndon to Reston, Virginia in 2023.
New manufacturing plant On July 15, 2008, after an intense, months-long battle between Huntsville, Alabama, a site in Michigan and Chattanooga, Tennessee, the company's supervisory board chose Chattanooga as the location for the new plant. Chattanooga Times and Free Press.com This $1 billion investment was expected to result in production of about 150,000 cars a year by its slated opening in 2011, playing a major role in the company's strategy to gain more than 6% of the car market, or about 800,000 cars on top of the 230,000 it produced in the US in 2007, by 2018. Chattanooga Times and Free Press.com This plant also became Volkswagen Group of America's manufacturing headquarters in the US. The plant was inaugurated on May 24, 2011.
Current US facilities As of March 2018, Volkswagen Group of America has the following 20 "operational facilities" across the US: Auburn Hills, Michigan – Customer Relations and After Sales Support Center, Information Technology & Services Reston, Virginia – Corporate Headquarters Hillsboro, Oregon – VW Credit, Inc. Center Belmont, California – Electronics Research Laboratory (ERL) Oxnard, California – Technical Center Ontario, California – Parts Distribution Center San Diego, California – Port/PPC Maricopa, Arizona – Proving Ground Golden, Colorado – VW Credit, Inc. and Technical Center Fort Worth, Texas – Parts Distribution Center Houston, Texas – Port/PPC and Parts Distribution Center Libertyville, Illinois – VW Credit, Inc. Center Pleasant Prairie, Wisconsin – Parts Distribution Center Jacksonville, Florida – Parts Distribution Center Brunswick, Georgia – Port/PPC Cranbury, New Jersey – Parts Distribution Center Allendale, New Jersey – Technical Center Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey – Product Liaison Davisville, Rhode Island – Port/PPC Chattanooga, Tennessee – Volkswagen Chattanooga Assembly Plant Woodcliff Lake, New Jersey – Northeast Region Office Rosemont, Illinois – Midwest Region Office Irving, Texas – South Central Region Office Alpharetta, Georgia – Southeast Region Office Westlake Village, California – Pacific Region Office
Regional offices VW Canada Head Office - Ajax, Ontario Volkswagen Finance Canada - Saint-Laurent, Quebec
Brands Volkswagen Current models The following is a list of the models currently available in the American market: Sedan Jetta SUVTiguan · Atlas · Atlas Cross Sport ·Taos · ID.4PerformanceGolf GTI · Golf RMinivansID. Buzz
Sales The total number of new vehicle sales year-by-year in the U.S. market is as follows: Calendar YearTotal American sales1970569,6961997137,8851998219,6791999315,5632000355,4792001355,6482002338,1252003302,6862004256,1112005224,1952006235,1402007230,5722008223,1282009213,4542010256,8302011324,4022012438,1332013407,7042014366,9702015349,4402016322,9482017339,6762018354,0642019363,3222020325,7842021375,030 2022301,0692023329,029
Audi Current Audi models The following is a list of the Audi/Audi Sport models currently available in the American market:
Audi AG Audi Sport A/Q-models S-models RS-modelsA3 SedanS3 SedanRS 3 SedanQ3 SUV – –Q4 e-tron SUV & Sportback – –A5 SedanS5 Sedan –Q5 SUV & SportbackSQ5 SUV & Sportback –A6 Sedan & allroad –RS 6 AvantA6 e-tron SedanS6 e-tron Sedan –Q6 e-tron SUV & SportbackSQ6 e-tron SUV & Sportback – – –RS 7 Sportback –S e-tron GTRS e-tron GT Q7 SUV SQ7 SUV –Q8 SUVSQ8 SUVRS Q8 SUVA8 SedanS8 Sedan –
Sales Calendar Year Total American sales 1995 18,124 1996 27,379 1997 34,160 1998 47,517 1999 65,959 2000 80,372 2001 83,283 2002 85,726 2003 86,421 2004 77,917 2005 83,066 2006 90,116 2007 93,506 2008 87,760 2009 82,716 2010 101,629 2011 117,570 2012 139,310 2013 158,061 2014 182,011 2015 202,202 2016 210,2132017226,5112018223,323
Bentley
Current models The following is a list of the models currently available in the American market: Flying Spur Continental GT Coupe Continental GT Convertible Bentayga
Lamborghini Current models The following is a list of the models currently available in the American market: Urus
Bugatti The only vehicle sold new under the Bugatti label is the Chiron.
See also
list of German cars