Crossovers, EVs spur confidence for VW

The five crossovers that Volkswagen's U.S. dealers will have by July — including the new Taos and ID4 — should boost the brand to double-digit sales increases in 2021, dealers heard last week during the brand's make meeting.

Tom McMenamin, chairman of the Volkswagen National Dealer Advisory Council, said the additions of the two new compact crossovers and the first full year of the Atlas Cross Sport should allow dealers to keep current customers and conquest new ones. He said VW dealers' experiences living through the COVID-19 pandemic last year have transformed the way all retailers do business.

"Good dealers found ways to adapt, great dealers found ways to capitalize," he said. "We need to keep this momentum going into 2021."

Scott Keogh, CEO of Volkswagen Group of America, said the brand is poised to make large gains in U.S. sales in 2021, especially as electric vehicles continue to grab a larger share of purchases. "The market is going to be bouncing back in 2021. American savings rates have never been higher," he said, adding that American consumers have about $1.6 trillion to $1.7 trillion ready to be spent.

Keogh said he believes that with regulatory and market changes in the U.S., EV sales could double to as much as 4 percent of share this year, and that VW is perfectly positioned to capitalize on it with the launch in March of the ID4.

McMenamin said he challenged VW's U.S. leadership to "provide us with the resources we need to succeed," including adequate product supplies, marketing and properly targeted and attractive incentive offers.

McMenamin said he called on his fellow VW dealers to "make a commitment to invest in our own dealerships" as the brand heads into the EV era by making sure they have the best staff, facilities and marketing plans to achieve the brand's aggressive sales goals.