US brands tap European auto recovery as VW left behind

European Union sales of new cars surged during November by close to 14%, shrugging off the diesel crisis of Volkswagen AG to turn the monthly sales to the second strongest for 2015, showed data on Tuesday by the EAMA or the European Automobile Manufacturer’s Association.

Volkswagen sales growth in Europe grew by just 2.4% compared with its mass-market and premium peers.

Volkswagen is being sued by a Chinese environmental group over the carmaker’s use of software to rig emissions tests in its diesel-powered cars, in what China’s state-owned media calls the first public interest lawsuit over the scandal in the German company’s biggest global market.

The scandal could easily cost the company tens of billions of euros in fix costs and fines and there have been concerns that it could also crimp sales going forward.

Among VW’s brands, Skoda took the hardest hit in November, with sales down 3 percent on the same time a year ago.

With the European vehicle market recovery still strong, sales of new cars were up 8.7% over the 11 months through November to more than 12.6 million units.

The jobs of more than 10,000 core workers at VW’s three eastern German sites in Zwickau, Chemnitz and Dresden are protected by the carmaker’s production plans, while another 160 temporary workers will be moved into open-ended employment, the works council said.

French automakers Peugeot-Citroen and Renault both saw sales increases near the industry average. Spanish brand Seat’s sales fell by 2.5 percent. BMW Group’s volume grew by 11 percent with 12 percent increase at Mini and an 11 percent rise in BMW vehicle sales.

The European divisions of US manufacturers Ford Motor Co. and General Motors Co. were among the biggest gainers last month, with new-car sales in the region growing 21% and 18%, respectively.

For 2015 as a whole, Ireland looks to be in pole position to post the largest increase in sales. For the year’s first 11 months, sales dropped 4.5%.