Volkswagen holds steady in 2025 as SUVs dominate and electric demand stays strong

Even with an unsettled European car market in 2025, Volkswagen managed to hold up its worldwide performance, delivering 4.73 million vehicles globally - a measured decline of 1.4%. The impact, however, varied considerably from region to region.

For the 21st year in a row, Volkswagen once again finished as Europe’s best-selling brand - a position it has held since 2005, when it overtook Renault - after selling more than 1.3 million units across the continent and posting growth of 5.1%. The sharpest rise was recorded in South America, where deliveries climbed 18.5% to more than 568,000 vehicles.

By contrast, results weakened in China and North America, where sales fell by 8.4% (2.01 million units) and 8.2% (544,000 units), respectively. These declines were shaped by conditions in the Asian market and by US import tariffs introduced at the start of last year.

“The trend in our deliveries shows that our products are being well received by customers and that we are on the right path with our strategy,” said Martin Sander, member of Volkswagen’s Board of Management responsible for Sales, Marketing and After Sales.

SUVs continue to dominate Volkswagen sales

SUVs accounted for 50.2% of Volkswagen’s global sales in 2025, representing a 5.3% increase compared with 2024. In the United States, more than 78.5% of the models sold were SUVs.

In Europe, the brand’s best-selling SUV was the Volkswagen T-Roc, built at Autoeuropa in Portugal. Altogether, 201,995 units were sold (+3.5% versus 2024). The second generation of this model arrived late last year, and a hybrid version (without plug-in charging) is expected to debut soon.

Demand for Volkswagen electric cars remains strong

Despite the uncertainties affecting the market, global demand for Volkswagen electric vehicles held steady in 2025, with around 382,000 units delivered worldwide (-0.2%).

In Germany, electric sales surged by 60.7%, supporting a pronounced increase of 49.1% across Europe as a whole, reaching 247,900 vehicles. That figure enabled Volkswagen to move ahead of Tesla as the biggest seller of electric cars in Europe.

Looking ahead to 2026, the group expects demand for 100% electric vehicles to rise markedly again, driven by the arrival of new models such as the ID. Polo and the production version of the ID. Cross.

“We expect the market environment to remain challenging in 2026. Even so, I am confident that we are well positioned to meet that challenge, thanks to our refreshed product portfolio and our focus on efficiency and competitiveness. In China, we will launch more than 10 new electric models this year,” Sander concluded.