NEWS

Beijing, January 11th, 2022. In 2021, Volkswagen Group China, together with its Chinese joint ventures, delivered 3.3 million vehicles (-14.1%) in Mainland China and Hong Kong. While volume brands were significantly impacted by the global semiconductor supply bottlenecks, Porsche, Bentley, and Lamborghini set new annual records, with year-on-year growth of 7.5%, 40.0% and 54.8%, respectively. Volkswagen brand, including JETTA, delivered over 2.4 million vehicles (-14.8%) in 2021, with a market share of 11.7%*, remaining the number one brand for Chinese customers.

Dr. Stephan Wöllenstein, CEO of Volkswagen Group China, said, “2021 has been one of the most challenging years in our history in China. Whilst our order books are well-filled, we were unable to match production to demand over a lack of semiconductors, with the situation further intensified by factory shutdowns – both on our side and supplier side – due to COVID-19 cases. The resulting loss in production cost us market share. Due to a relatively strong first half of the year, we were still able to maintain our leading market position, resisting the ongoing challenges. Looking ahead for this year, the chip supply situation will remain volatile for the first half, however, we expect a progressive recovery, with production stabilizing over the course of the year.”

He added, “In spite of the challenges, we further accelerated our electric transformation. Having launched ten new NEV models, including seven BEVs, our NEV strategy gained momentum, with overall NEV sales doubling and BEV deliveries alone tripling. We also broke ground on our sustainable state-of-the-art Volkswagen Anhui MEB vehicle and components plants, which will be completed this year, with start of production in 2023. In addition, we defined our strategic roadmap for China until 2030, focusing on innovation and a strong R&D base, to provide China-specific products and services more quickly to meet market needs, including connectivity and automated driving.”

Volkswagen brand, and its JETTA sub-brand, delivered over 2.4 million vehicles (-14.8%)  in Mainland China and Hong Kong in 2021. Even with the past year’s challenges, the brand has maintained its position as the number one choice for Chinese car buyers and further extended its portfolio, with the launch of seven new models and six refreshments. SUVs saw deliveries of 718,000 units from January through December, accounting for 31.8% of the brand’s total sales (2020: 29.9%), while NEV sales grew an unprecedented 128% year-on-year, with over 119,000 deliveries. This performance was underscored by the introduction of Volkswagen’s all-electric ID. family – with two ID.4s, two ID.6s and the ID.3 – which experienced continuous and solid growth to achieve total deliveries of over 70,000 units by year-end, despite semiconductor shortages impacting production from October. The JETTA sub-brand saw deliveries of almost 170,000 units, with strong year-on-year growth of 8.9%, and 0.8% market share.

Audi delivered 701,300 vehicles to customers in China in 2021. The sales of imported models soared by 53.9%, with demand for the S and RS models skyrocketing by 187.1% and 124.7%, respectively. Several models, such as the Audi Q2L, Audi A3 Sportback, Audi A4 Avant and Audi A6 Allroad were sales leaders in their segments, the Audi Q8, Audi RS 7, Audi RS 6, Q5 L Sportback, Q3 Sportback, Q2 L e-tron posted their best-ever sales results. The Four Rings expects to further grow in 2022 with the delivery of SAIC Audi models and the next-stage electrification offensive. Audi's NEV offerings will be fully strengthened with the launch of the first MEB models, including the Q4 e-tron, and the Q5 e-tron, the first Audi “Roadjet” model, as well as e-tron GT models. 

ŠKODA handed over 71,200 vehicles to Chinese customers in 2021, supported by the launch of the OCTAVIA PRO in May and the KAROQ MY 2022 in November. Both models received industry recognition in 2021, with the OCTAVIA PRO ranking first in its segment for customer satisfaction in the China Quality Association’s China Automobile Customer Satisfaction Index (CACSI), and the KAROQ topping the compact SUV segment in J.D. Power’s 2021 China Automobile Product Attractiveness Index.

Porsche recorded excellent overall results in China, its largest single market, with an increase of 7.5% over the already-record year 2020. Despite the challenges posed by supply bottlenecks, a total of 95,700 vehicles were delivered to Chinese customers. The iconic Porsche 911 continued experiencing solid growth with a 67% increase and 4,002 deliveries to Chinese owners. The Taycan remained in high market demand, delivering more than 7,000 units.

* Market share is an estimation. Total market data will only be available later.