Annoying exception. Volkswagen is the only major car brand to have suffered a decline in sales last year in France. The German manufacturer sold 139,360 vehicles in 2017, 2.7% less than in 2016. In January, VW even saw its volumes unscrew by 18%, and Dacia take fourth place in the market behind Peugeot, Renault and Citroen. Worse, there is more Volkswagen in the Top 10 bestsellers – all this despite a policy of more than generous discount, up to 10,000 euros …
“It’s true, we saw a slight decline last year, we recognize at Volkswagen France. Our new products arrived at the end of the year and our SUV offer is still insufficient, “says one within the subsidiary. At the moment, these 4 × 4 urban have a good third of sales … If they had on the shelf the Tiguan, an SUV still sought by families, the dealers of the brand were able to market in November the new T-Roc, a small SUV and the latest version of the Polo city car. The compact Golf, for its part, had a facelift in early spring.
Repeat scandals
Would customers have in mind the many scandals that have shaken Volkswagen since the beginning of the dieselgate in September 2015? In fact, sales to individuals – barkers most sensitive to brand image – fell 9% last year. Internally, it is estimated that the “dieselgate” had a negative impact that is difficult to quantify, but limited in any case.
“The impact of scandals on brands is moderate but real,” confirms Flavien Neuvy, of Cétélem Observatory, who says he is “surprised” by the delayed effect of the rigged motors business. “The slowing of sales may be due to the number of episodes of the scandal. With ads, opening investigations, indictments, fines … It’s a real soap opera! “Points the expert.
New direction
Charge to the new hexagonal direction to correct the shot and restore the coat of arms. Last August, Thierry Lespiaucq replaced Jacques Rivoal as Chairman of the Executive Board of Volkswagen France Group. against a background of tampered sales statistics , and Pierre Boutin took the wheel of the Volkswagen brand in November.