Having threatened to do so all year Volkswagen Ireland has finally wrestled the coveted number 1 slot from Toyota. With 482 new car registrations in August the German giant moved 17 units ahead of Toyota.
Excluding personal imports, which Irish distributors have no control over, 9,357 Volkswagens have been registered in Ireland to date equating to a 12.6 per cent share of the market. While the Ford Focus is still the top-selling model in the country the Volkswagen Golf and Polo models were the biggest sellers in a traditionally tough month for the motor industry.
Commenting, John Donegan, Head of Sales and Marketing for Volkswagen Ireland said, "We are delighted to have enjoyed a strong performance (in August) and to have taken the number one spot, not only for the month, but for the year-to-date also. This reflects very positively on the commitment and support that we receive from our network of dealers and on our strong retail offers and of course, our excellent product."
Volkswagen Ireland's sales come against the backdrop of a motor industry down 12.2 per cent compared to last year's and 4.4 per cent on August 2011.