Who is the World Leader?

It seems the automaker at the top of the market as far as volume is nearly up for grabs this year.  For many years Toyota has held this top spot with little to no competition, but the Germans at Volkswagen had enough of the arrogance of the Japanese automaker and decided to do something about it.  Their goal was to be the largest automaker in the world in terms of sales by 2018 and it sure looked like they were well on their way to achieving that goal and doing so three years earlier than expected.

What brought about this sales success for Volkswagen?  Massive advertising campaigns and a change that has been going on for nearly two decades have brought about a different opinion of this brand.  For many years Volkswagen, at least in the US, was a fun brand offering the Beetle and the Microbus but nothing truly serious.  Then there was the dismal 1980s with the Rabbit that actually spurned one of the most popular models we have now, the Golf.  Along with the movement from the fun and funky to the mainstream and more acceptable, Volkswagen launched massive advertising campaigns and gave us cars that had more power and precision than most of the Toyota models.

On the flip side of the coin, Toyota has worked to progress their manufacturing process which allows for a team to build and become more efficient.  Toyota has been on top for a long time and certainly intends to stay there, offering a wide variety of vehicles on nearly every continent of the world.  With the increased efficiency of production and the already stellar reputation for value and reliability it’s easy for Toyota to remain a leader on the market as a brand and a name we trust.  Just say Camry to anyone and they understand the car and what it brings to the table.

After three quarters of the year have now passed, Toyota has sold 7.5 million vehicles to the 7.43 million sold by Volkswagen.  At the halfway point of the year Volkswagen was actually on top with 5.04 million sold versus the 5.02 million that Toyota has pushed forward.  Even though these numbers are down about 1.5 percent over the same time last year the fact that Volkswagen even had a lead was promising for the German brand. (Third place goes to GM for the first three quarters at 7.15 million vehicles sold)

Unfortunately for Volkswagen the diesel engine scandal could not come at a worse time.  This affects over 11 million vehicles around the world and certainly puts into question what the company is going to do to improve its emissions and even more what it will do to regain the trust, faith and reputation it once had.  With this blow there is no reason for Toyota to lose its top spot in the fourth quarter, but with the race as tight as it was, Toyota should certainly take notice and figure out how to keep the spot without any other automaker even coming close otherwise we may see GM as the next top seller in a few years.