Volkswagen EV sales up almost 50% in first quarter

The Volkswagen Group successfully continued its transition to electric mobility in the first quarter of 2023.

By the end of March, deliveries of all-electric vehicles (BEVs) have risen by 42 percent compared to the prior-year period, which was hit harder by supply chain issues, the manufacturer said.

A total of 141,000 BEVs were handed over to customers, up from 99,200 in the first quarter of 2022. BEVs made up 6.9 percent of total deliveries in this period, compared with 5.2 percent in the first three months of the previous year. Europe was the biggest growth driver here with an increase of 68 percent to 98,300 vehicles. The BEV order backlog in Western Europe remains high at over 260,000 vehicles.

Around 70 percent of the Group’s BEV deliveries went to its home region of Europe. China was the Group’s second-largest BEV market with deliveries of 21,500 vehicles (global share: 15 percent). In the United States, 15,700 BEVs were delivered (global share: 11 percent), almost twice as many as in the prior-year period.

By the end of March, the Volkswagen Passenger Cars brand has delivered 70,000 vehicles, around half of all the Group’s BEVs. This was followed by Audi with 34,600 vehicles (Group share: 25 percent), ŠKODA with 12,400 vehicles (Group share: 9 percent), SEAT/CUPRA with 9,200 vehicles (Group share: 6 percent), Porsche with 9,200 vehicles (Group share: 6 percent) and Volkswagen Commercial Vehicles with 5,500 vehicles (Group share: 4 percent).

Hildegard Wortmann, member of the Extended Executive Committee for Sales, said: “We started the year on a sound footing for all-electric vehicles with a 68 percent increase in Europe and double the number of vehicles delivered in the USA. At the Shanghai Auto Show this week, we demonstrated how we are responding to the challenges we face in this segment in China, and in March we already saw sales there increase year-on-year.

“The Volkswagen ID.7, which has just been unveiled, will give us further tailwind in all core markets. We will keep our sights on our ambitious goal of BEVs accounting for around one in ten vehicles delivered globally to customers this year.”

The most successful BEV models in the first quarter of 2023 were:

Volkswagen ID.4/ID.5 41,900

Volkswagen ID.32 23,600

Audi Q4 e-tron (incl. Sportback) 21,300

ŠKODA Enyaq iV (incl. Coupé) 12,400

Audi e-tron/Q8 e-tron (incl. Sportback) 9,700