VW’s U.S. Sales Fell 10.9% in Q3. Take Out the EVs and They Rose 5.5%
The ID.4 and ID. Buzz lost more sales than the whole brand did. The Tiguan now makes up more than a third of Volkswagen’s U.S. volume.
Volkswagen's U.S. sales fell 10.9% in the third quarter, to 78,179 vehicles, and the whole decline traces to two electric models the brand has all but stopped selling. Set the ID.4 and ID. Buzz aside, and the rest of the lineup grew 5.5% from a year ago.
The headline number is still the weakest among the automakers in our Q3 sales roundup, where GM fell 5.5% and Ford 6.6% in a market that J.D. Power and GlobalData expected to finish about flat. Volkswagen of America published its third-quarter sales figures on Monday with a table and no commentary.
EVs lost more sales than the brand did
The ID.4 found 989 buyers, down 92.1% from 12,470 a year earlier. The ID. Buzz dropped 82.5%, to 432. Together, that is 13,518 fewer electric vehicles than in the third quarter of 2025. The brand as a whole was down 9,526.
EVs made up 17% of VW's U.S. sales a year ago. Last quarter, they were 1.8%.
The comparison is lopsided. The third quarter of 2025 was the ID.4's best ever in the U.S., as buyers rushed to use the $7,500 federal tax credit before it ended. VW stopped building the ID.4 in Chattanooga in April, and dealers are now selling what is left. There is no 2026 ID. Buzz at all, and the van's U.S. return has slipped to the 2028 model year. This month, the ID.4 also picked up a battery recall covering 22,524 vehicles.
Tiguan and Jetta carry the showroom
- Tiguan: 28,091, up 27.4%
- Atlas: 15,375, down 19.5%
- Jetta sedan: 14,092, up 24.9%
- Taos: 9,780, up 0.4%
- Atlas Cross Sport: 6,889, down 9.5%
- GTI: 1,829, down 5.3%
- Golf R: 702, down 32.6%
The Tiguan now accounts for more than one in three Volkswagens sold in the U.S. Add the Jetta, and two models make up 54% of the brand's volume.
The three-row Atlas and the Atlas Cross Sport went the other way. Their combined sales fell 16.7%, to 22,264, ahead of the second-generation Atlas that is due at U.S. dealers this fall. VW didn't give a reason for the decline.
What comes next
The quarter was also a step back from the spring. VW sold about 89,000 vehicles in the second quarter, a 24.9% gain, and finished the first half up 2.3%. Through nine months, the total stands at roughly 241,000, about 2% behind last year's pace by our math.
The electric side won't recover soon. The ID.4's successor is the ID. Tiguan that debuted on October 9, and VW says U.S. timing and pricing will come only after the European launch in early 2027. Until then, Volkswagen's U.S. results rest on the gas Tiguan, the Jetta, and the new Atlas.
