After several years of losses, Volkswagen says it is finally turning around its North American operations. VW expects its North American operations to break even by 2013 and return to profitability shortly thereafter.
VW has lost money every year in North America since 2002, but has managed to reduce its losses over the last six years. VW expects that trend to continue, with a planned return to profitability by 2018.
VW’s return to the black is being fueled by its latest products, including the all-new Jetta and Passat — both of which were specifically designed for U.S. tastes. Although both models are priced lower than their predecessors, their average transaction prices have increased tremendously.
Those profits aren’t just padding VW’s pockets, though, as the automaker says 90 percent of its dealers are now generating profits from the VW brand. That percentage could climb even higher in the coming months as the new Passat begins to hit the market in significant numbers.
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1.’VW improves dealer…’ view
