When is a Delivery Not a Delivery? When It Involves a French Volkswagen

Steph Willems
by Steph Willems

There’s nothing like the antics automakers get up to when fierce rivalry or falling sales forces an emergency pressing of the desperation button. Just last year, Fiat Chrysler Automobiles found itself in quite a bit of hot water after its long-running sales-recording practices came under the federal microscope. Mounting pressure eventually forced the company to dial back its monthly figures, shattering some advertisement-friendly sales streaks.

Across the pond, Volkswagen now finds itself with egg (quiche?) on its face following a report by its internal auditors. According to German publication Der Spiegel, the automaker plumped up its French sales tallies for years — to the tune of at least 800,000 vehicles.

The details of this latest case of sales fudging, which apparently went undiscovered for seven years, seem particularly brazen.

The report claims Volkswagen’s French division sent misleading delivery figures to the automaker’s headquarters starting in 2010.

VW’s auditors discovered many owners registered their cars “several months or even years” after the automaker recorded the delivery of those vehicles, Der Spiegel wrote, and some didn’t even have purchase contracts at the recorded time of delivery. The inflated sales reportedly involves vehicles from across the Volkswagen Group range — VW, Audi, Skoda and Seat.

The auditor’s report isn’t new, having landed on VW Group CEO Matthias Müller’s desk in late April, though it is to the public. It’s believed the findings led to the departure of the head of VW’s French division. Jacques Rivoal quit the company following the report, with VW claiming “strategic differences” with management as the reason.

The automaker has not acknowledged the contents of the report.

In France, Volkswagen Group plays third fiddle in a market dominated by domestic vehicles from PSA Group and Renault. Car sales in the Tricolor country fell 2.2 percent in 2010 as France gradually fell victim to the eurozone recession plaguing its neighbors. Though the sales slide wasn’t as steep as in Germany, Italy, or Greece, it did impact Volkswagen. French VW Group sales of roughly 277,000 in 2011 declined to about 237,000 three years later, but the slump wasn’t nearly as bad as the steep declines recorded by PSA and Renault during that period.

Or so the company believed. So far, it isn’t known when or if the automaker will be compelled to pull an FCA and trim back its official French sales figures.

[Source: Reuters] [Image: Volkswagen]

Steph Willems
Steph Willems

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  • DownUnder2014 DownUnder2014 on Jul 05, 2017

    That is very interesting. I wonder if they have done it for any other market...

    • APaGttH APaGttH on Jul 06, 2017

      Given the rat's nest that is being exposed, I would venture to say, yes.

  • JohnTaurus JohnTaurus on Jul 06, 2017

    I need RobertRyan to come and explain how this is actually good news for VW. I wouldn't blame the French VW guys, they're just following the example set by those back in Germany: solving problems by lying and cheating.

    • See 1 previous
    • Inside Looking Out Inside Looking Out on Jul 06, 2017

      Because VW is #1 in the visible Universe (and most likely other parallel Universes as well).

  • El scotto Oh, ye nattering nabobs of negativism! Think of countries like restaurants. Our neighbors to the north and south are almost as good and the service is fantastic. They're awfully close to being as good as the US. Oh the Europeans are interesting and quaint but you really only go there a few times a year. Gents, the US is simply the hottest restaurant in town. Have to stand in line to get in? Of course. Can you hand out bribes to get in quicker? Of course. Suppliers and employees? Only the best on a constant basis.Did I mention there is a dress code? We strictly enforce it. Don't like it? Suck it.
  • 1995 SC At least you can still get one. There isn't much for Ford folks to be happy about nowadays, but the existence of the Mustang and the fact that the lessons from back in the 90s when Ford tried to kill it and replace it with the then flavor of the day seem to have been learned (the only lessons they seem to remember) are a win not only for Ford folks but for car people in general. One day my Super Coupe will pop its headgaskets (I know it will...I read it on the Internet). I hope I will still be physically up to dropping the supercharged Terminator Cobra motor into it. in all seriousness, The Mustang is a.win for car guys.
  • Lorenzo Heh. The major powers, military or economic, set up these regulators for the smaller countries - the big guys do what they want, and always have. Are the Chinese that unaware?
  • Lorenzo The original 4-Runner, by its very name, promised something different in the future. What happened?
  • Lorenzo At my age, excitement is dangerous. one thing to note: the older models being displayed are more stylish than their current versions, and the old Subaru Forester looks more utilitarian than the current version. I thought the annual model change was dead.
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