Automotive

Volkswagen, Europe (with Škoda) and electrics push. But China weighs in

Group delivery balance: the Dragon market remains the main trouble spot, with a 7% drop in the quarter and 4% in the first nine months. Headline -2%

by Alberto Annicchiarico

10 October 2025

3' min read

Translated by AI

Versione italiana

Key points

Škoda grows most
Audi down in nine months, electrics recover
Bev strategy wins in Europe (and contradictions)

3' min read

Translated by AI

Versione italiana

The Volkswagen group ended the first nine months of 2025 with 6.6 million vehicles delivered, up 1.2% year-on-year. Increased sales in Europe (2.7 million, +3%) and South America (482,000, +15%) more than offset weakness in China (1.97 million, -4%) and North America (709,000, -8%), confirming a quarter of consolidation for Europe's leading manufacturer (worth one-fifth of the continental market), three weeks after the profit warning due to the difficulties of subsidiary Porsche. The stock lost just under 2%, returning to the red in the 2025 financial statements.

Deliveries of battery-electric vehicles (Bev) rose to 717,500 units, an increase of 42% year-on-year. The global share of electrics in the group's total rose from 8 to 11%, while in Western Europe it reached 20%. The continental Bev market share is 27%. Plug-in hybrids (Phev) grew by 55% to 299,000 units, supported by second-generation models with autonomy of up to 143 km.

Škoda grows the most

Among the best-selling electric models are the VVolkswagen ID.4/ID.5 (128,900 units) and the ID.3 (88,800), followed by the Audi Q4 e-tron (65,700), Škoda Elroq (60,400) and ID.7 (55,500). The Porsche Macan electric car (36,300) is also on the rise.

The order book in Western Europe increased by 17% in the first nine months, with a strong boost from new models including the ID.7 Tourer, Cupra Terramar, Audi Q6 e-tron and Porsche 911. Bev orders grew by 64%, accounting for about one fifth of the total.

The Brand Group Core (Volkswagen, Škoda, Seat/Cupra and Vw commercial vehicles) delivered 4.98 million vehicles, an increase of 3.6%. Škoda recorded the strongest growth (+14.1%), followed by Seat/Cupra (+4.1%). The Volkswagen brand grew steadily (+2.8%).

Audi down in nine months, electrics recover

The Progressive Brand Group, led by Audi, saw a 4.8% drop in deliveries in the nine months, to 1.18 million units, with an improvement in the third quarter (-2.6%). The Ingolstadt brand remains penalised by the slowdown in China (-9%) and tariffs in the US (-5.1%), but reports a strong recovery in electric (+41%, 163,400 units), with a peak of +59% in the quarter.

The Sport Luxury Brand Group, i.e. Porsche, closed at 212,500 units (-6%), while the Traton industrial vehicle division recorded a drop of 8.5%, affected by the slowdown of Scania.

China remains the Achilles' heel

In a comment on LinkedIn, the CEO of the Volkswagen brand, Thomas Schäfer, pointed out that 'almost one in five cars sold in Europe comes from a group brand' and that the push for electrics 'is producing tangible results, even in a complex competitive environment'.

China remains the main trouble spot, partly due to competition from local brands and the postponement of the launch of new Bev models. In the first nine months of 2025, total deliveries in the Kingdom fell below 2 million. In the quarter 660,000 (-7.2). As for electrics, 85,100 (-42.5%) were delivered between January and September, while in the third quarter it was even worse: 25,800 (-55.2%) in a market worth 2 million in the period.

Bev strategy wins in Europe (and contradictions)

In Europe, on the other hand, the electrification strategy and the expansion of the range are bearing fruit. In the first nine months of 2025, deliveries of battery-powered vehicles on the continent rose to 522,600 units, up 78% year-on-year and accelerating by 60% in the third quarter. Also expanding was the United States, where Bevs reached 68,700 units (+85%), while in the July-September quarter alone, growth was 213%.

The leadership of the Wolfsburg group in the European electric car market - while waiting for the Chinese manufacturers' offensive to unfold in full - is also the result of stringent regulations that have pushed manufacturers to concentrate investment and resources on electric cars. A regulatory framework that today continental manufacturers themselves, and even governments, consider excessively binding, calling for it to be revised in terms of technological neutrality.

Alberto Annicchiaricovicecaposervizio
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