Volkswagen Group Deliveries Fall 9% as European EV Orders Rise
Volkswagen Group delivered 6.011 million vehicles worldwide during the first nine months of 2026, down 9.0 percent from the same period in 2025. The company’s October 12 report shows sharply different regional trends: growth in Europe and South America was outweighed by large declines in China and a smaller drop in North America.
Europe holds up while China contracts
European deliveries rose 1.7 percent to 2.956 million vehicles. Western Europe increased 1.1 percent, Central and Eastern Europe rose 5.3 percent, and Germany edged up 0.9 percent. South America gained 4.3 percent to 502,500 vehicles, helped by a 12.3 percent increase in Brazil.
North American deliveries fell 4.0 percent to 680,200, including a 7.8 percent decline in the United States. Asia-Pacific deliveries dropped 27.9 percent to 1.591 million, with China down 30.2 percent to 1.379 million. Volkswagen described China’s market contraction, U.S. tariffs and regulatory changes as important pressures; those explanations are the company’s assessment, not independent findings.
Electric demand splits sharply by region
The group delivered 678,700 battery-electric vehicles globally through September, 5.4 percent fewer than a year earlier. Europe was the exception: BEV deliveries increased 12.1 percent to 586,100, including 19.6 percent growth in the third quarter. Volkswagen says one in five vehicles it delivered in Europe was fully electric.
In the United States, Volkswagen Group’s BEV deliveries fell 78.4 percent to 14,900 for the nine-month period. The company linked the decline to the expiration of government subsidies and import-tariff pressure. China BEV deliveries declined 42.5 percent to 48,900, although Volkswagen reported roughly 30 percent year-over-year growth for all electrified vehicles in China during the third quarter as locally developed models arrived.
Orders point to a different European mix
Volkswagen says its European BEV order book doubled from the end of 2025 and now represents about 40 percent of outstanding European orders. Its Electric Urban Car Family—the Volkswagen ID. Polo and ID. Cross, Škoda Epiq and CUPRA Raval—has collected nearly 150,000 orders, according to the group.
The best-selling battery-electric model in the group through September was the Škoda Elroq at 92,200 deliveries, followed by the Volkswagen ID.4/ID.5 at 81,900 and Škoda Enyaq at 72,700. Chiefs Review has also reported on the Volkswagen ID. Tiguan and Porsche’s recent delivery results.
Source
Volkswagen Group Q3 2026 delivery report, published October 12, 2026. All figures are company-reported and have not been independently audited by Chiefs Review.
Featured image: Volkswagen Group Q3 2026 deliveries infographic. Image: Volkswagen Group / official media release. Image source and report.