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102-463: Clients include the Volkswagen Group , BMW , Stellantis , Ford , GM , Porsche , Toyota , Claas and Liebherr . Component manufacturer clients include Bosch , Aptiv , Continental , ZF Group , ETAS , Forvia , Freudenberg , Glatt , MWM , Schaeffler and Sonplas. As of 2023 the shareholders of IAV GmbH were: IAV has the following worldwide subsidiary companies: In 2009

204-431: A $ 2.8 billion criminal fine for rigging diesel-powered vehicles to cheat on government emissions tests". The "unprecedented" plea deal formalized a punishment that Volkswagen AG agreed to earlier in 2017. In addition, the plea deal includes a $ 1.5 billion settlement for various environmental, customs and financial violations. Overall, Volkswagen will pay more than $ 30 billion in penalties and lawsuit settlements related to

306-461: A 2,612 cc inline-four engine model Type A, followed by a 3,564 cc model, as well as 4,680 cc and 5,720 cc models. These cars were successful even in sporting events. The first six-cylinder model Type M, 4,655 cc appeared in 1924. August Horch left the Audiwerke in 1920 for a high position at the ministry of transport, but he was still involved with Audi as a member of

408-586: A 51% controlling stake in SEAT, making it the first non-German subsidiary of the Volkswagen Group. On 23 December the same year, it became the Spanish company's major shareholder by increasing its share up to 75%. In 1990—after purchasing its entire equity—Volkswagen AG took over the full ownership of SEAT, making the company a wholly owned subsidiary, and on 28 March 1991, another step to the expansion of

510-527: A 90.1% stake in the Italian automotive design house Italdesign Giugiaro . In less than three months, the transaction had been completed making the Italian firm a member of the Volkswagen Group. Since 2013 the Volkswagen Group has held a 89.7% stake in Traton . In 2015 research showed a security flaw in the keyless ignition of Volkswagen and other carmakers' vehicles. Volkswagen spent two years trying to keep

612-400: A centre differential . Commonly referred to as the "Ur-Quattro" (the " Ur- " prefix is a German augmentative used, in this case, to mean 'original' and is also applied to the first generation of Audi's S4 and S6 Sport Saloons, as in "UrS4" and "UrS6"), few of these vehicles were produced (all hand-built by a single team), but the model was a great success in rallying. Prominent wins proved

714-520: A completely uneconomic enterprise." In 1948, the Ford Motor Company of USA was offered Volkswagen, but Ernest Breech , a Ford executive vice president, said he did not think either the plant or the car was "worth a damn." Breech later said that he would have considered merging Ford of Germany and Volkswagen, but after the war, ownership of the company was in such dispute that nobody could possibly hope to be able to take it over. As part of

816-532: A corner of the room. Several times he looked like he was on the verge of saying something but would just swallow his words and continue working, until he finally blurted out, "Father – audiatur et altera pars ... wouldn't it be a good idea to call it audi instead of horch ?". Horch in German means 'hark' or 'hear', which is audi in the singular imperative form of audire —'to listen'—in Latin. The idea

918-578: A corporate "Strategy 2025" that focuses on electrification of its portfolio. The VW Group developed the Volkswagen Group MEB platform chassis that will be utilized in a range of various cars and light utility vehicles across several VW Group marques due to its flexibility and floor-mounted battery. As of May 2018, the VW Group has committed $ 48 billion in car battery supplies and plans to outfit 16 factories to build electric cars by

1020-654: A device requiring the driver to press the brake pedal before shifting out of park. A legacy of the Audi 5000 and other reported cases of sudden unintended acceleration are intricate gear stick patterns and brake interlock mechanisms to prevent inadvertent shifting into forward or reverse. It is unclear how the defects in the idle-stabilization system were addressed. Audi's U.S. sales, which had reached 74,061 in 1985, dropped to 12,283 in 1991 and remained level for three years, —with resale values falling dramatically. Audi subsequently offered increased warranty protection and renamed

1122-634: A drop in Chinese sales. On 18 September 2015, the US EPA announced that Volkswagen had installed a "defeat device" software code in the diesel models sold in the US from 2009 to 2015. The code was intended to detect when an emissions test was being conducted, and altered emissions controls for better compliance. Off the test stand, the controls were relaxed, and emissions jumped 35 to 40 times regulatory levels according to investigators at West Virginia University and

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1224-409: A problem when the brake pedal was pushed. Subsequent investigation revealed that 60 Minutes had engineered the failure—fitting a canister of compressed air on the passenger-side floor, linked via a hose to a hole drilled into the transmission. Audi contended, prior to findings by outside investigators, that the problems were caused by driver error, specifically pedal misapplication. Subsequently,

1326-616: A profit warning, saying it had set aside $ 7 billion to fix the fraud. On 23 September 2015, Martin Winterkorn announced his resignation from the CEO position after a crisis meeting of the company board. On 25 September 2015 Matthias Müller was named CEO. Müller was the head of the Porsche marque within the VW corporate umbrella. On 21 April 2017, a U.S. federal judge ordered Volkswagen "to pay

1428-535: A state of the art factory for Auto Union's, the company's aging model range at this time did not benefit from the economic boom of the early 1960s to the same extent as competitor manufacturers such as Volkswagen and Opel . The decision to dispose of the Auto Union business was based on its lack of profitability. Ironically, by the time they sold the business, it also included a large new factory and near production-ready modern four-stroke engine, which would enable

1530-585: A study of their wartime activities. The investigation found that the company worked with the SS to build seven labor camps where more than 3,700 prisoners were put to work for Auto Union. In addition, 16,500 more people were forced to work at the company's factories in Zwickau and Chemnitz , and another 18,000 at an underground plant in Bavaria where 4,500 people died. Some of the company's factories were bombed by

1632-501: A subsidiary responsible for development and production of Audi high-performance models: the R8 and the RS model range. The new merged company was incorporated on 1 January 1969 and was known as Audi NSU Auto Union AG , with its headquarters at NSU's Neckarsulm plant, and saw the emergence of Audi as a separate brand for the first time since the pre-war era. Volkswagen introduced the Audi brand to

1734-695: A technology cooperation and joint development agreement on platform and software. Rooted in Europe, the Volkswagen Group operates in 153 countries. Volkswagen Passenger Cars is the Group's original marque, and the other major subsidiaries include passenger car marques such as Audi , Bentley , Lamborghini , Porsche , SEAT , and Škoda . Volkswagen AG also has operations in commercial vehicles , owning Volkswagen Commercial Vehicles , along with controlling stakes in truck, bus and diesel engine manufacturers Scania AB and MAN SE . The Volkswagen Group comprises

1836-603: A template for VW's new front-wheel-drive water-cooled range which debuted from the mid-1970s onward. In 1969, Auto Union merged with NSU , based in Neckarsulm , near Stuttgart . In the 1950s, NSU had been the world's largest manufacturer of motorcycles, but had moved on to produce small cars like the NSU Prinz , the TT and TTS versions of which are still popular as vintage race cars. NSU then focused on new rotary engines based on

1938-449: A type of electronic throttle control . Significantly: multiple "intermittent malfunctions of the electronic control unit were observed and recorded ... and [were also observed and] reported by Transport Canada." With a series of recall campaigns, Audi made several modifications; the first adjusted the distance between the brake and accelerator pedal on automatic-transmission models. Later repairs, of 250,000 cars dating back to 1978, added

2040-623: Is a German public multinational conglomerate manufacturer of passenger and commercial vehicles, motorcycles, engines and turbomachinery. Headquartered in Wolfsburg , Lower Saxony , Germany, and since the late 2000s is a publicly-traded family business owned by Porsche SE , which in turn is half-owned but fully controlled by the Austrian-German Porsche and Piëch family . The company also offers related services, including financing, leasing, and fleet management. In 2016, it

2142-426: Is among the best-selling luxury automobile brands in the world. Automobile company Wanderer was originally established in 1885, later becoming a branch of Audi AG. Another company, NSU, which also later merged into Audi, was founded during this time, and later supplied the chassis for Gottlieb Daimler 's four-wheeler. On 14 November 1899, August Horch (1868–1951) established the company A. Horch & Cie. in

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2244-723: Is divided into two primary divisions : the Automotive Division and the Financial Services Division. As of 2008, it had about 342 subsidiary companies. Volkswagen also has three joint ventures in China, FAW-Volkswagen , SAIC Volkswagen and Volkswagen Anhui . The company has operations in roughly 150 countries, and it has 100 production facilities across 27 countries. Volkswagen was founded in Berlin in 1937 and incorporated in Wolfsburg to manufacture

2346-710: The Audi A4 replaced the Audi 80 . The new nomenclature scheme was applied to the Audi 100 to become the Audi A6 (with a minor facelift). This also meant the S4 became the S6 and a new S4 was introduced in the A4 body. The S2 was discontinued. The Audi Cabriolet continued on (based on the Audi 80 platform) until 1999, gaining the engine upgrades along the way. A new A3 hatchback model (sharing

2448-732: The Audi Brand Group focused on more sporty values – consisted of Audi, SEAT and Lamborghini – and the Volkswagen Brand Group on the field of classic values – consisted of Volkswagen, Skoda, Bentley and Bugatti  – with each Brand Group's product vehicles and performance being respectively under the higher responsibility of Audi and Volkswagen brands. Volkswagen Group revealed on 24 October 2009 that it had made an offer to acquire long-time partner and German niche automotive manufacturer Wilhelm Karmann GmbH out of bankruptcy protection. In November 2009,

2550-877: The Ehrenfeld district of Cologne . In 1902, he moved with his company to Reichenbach im Vogtland . On 10 May 1904, he founded the August Horch & Cie. Motorwagenwerke AG , a joint-stock company in Zwickau (State of Saxony ). After troubles with Horch chief financial officer, August Horch left Motorwagenwerke and founded in Zwickau on 16 July 1909, his second company, the August Horch Automobilwerke GmbH . His former partners sued him for trademark infringement. The German Reichsgericht (Supreme Court) in Leipzig , eventually determined that

2652-618: The Industrial plans for Germany , large parts of German industry, including Volkswagen, were to be dismantled. Total German car production was set at a maximum of 10% of the 1936 car production numbers. The company survived by producing cars for the British Army, and in 1948 the British Government handed the company back over to the German state, and it was managed by former Opel chief Heinrich Nordhoff . Production of

2754-561: The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) concluded that the majority of unintended acceleration cases, including all the ones that prompted the 60 Minutes report, were caused by driver error such as confusion of pedals. CBS did not acknowledge the test results of involved government agencies, but did acknowledge the similar results of another study. In a review study published in 2012, NHTSA summarized its past findings about

2856-890: The National Socialist Deutsche Arbeitsfront (German Labour Front) and incorporated in the Stadt des KdF-Wagens bei Fallersleben, ( " City of the Strength Through Joy car at Fallersleben ) on 28 May 1937. The purpose of the company was to manufacture the Volkswagen car, originally referred to as the Porsche Type 60, then the Volkswagen Type 1, and commonly called the Volkswagen Beetle . This vehicle

2958-763: The OTC Marketplace . Volkswagen delisted from the London Stock Exchange in 2013. The government of Lower Saxony holds 12.7% of the company's shares, granting it, by law, 20% of the voting rights. Volkswagen (meaning 'People's car' in German) was founded in Berlin as the Gesellschaft zur Vorbereitung des Deutschen Volkswagens mbH ('Limited Liability Company for the preparation of the German People's Car', abbreviated to Gezuvor ) by

3060-470: The Volkswagen Golf Mk4 's platform) was introduced to the range in 1996, and the radical Audi TT coupé and roadster were debuted in 1998 based on the same underpinnings. The petrol engines available throughout the range were now a 1.4 L, 1.6 L and 1.8 L four-cylinder, 1.8 L four-cylinder turbo, 2.6 L and 2.8 L V6 , 2.2 L turbo-charged five-cylinder and

3162-619: The Volkswagen Polo ) in 1974. The Audi 50 was a seminal design because it was the first incarnation of the Golf/Polo concept, one that led to a hugely successful world car. Ultimately, the Audi 80 and 100 (progenitors of the A4 and A6 , respectively) became the company's biggest sellers, whilst little investment was made in the fading NSU range; the Prinz models were dropped in 1973 whilst

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3264-585: The Volkswagen Type 3 in 1961, the Volkswagen Type 4 in 1968, and the Volkswagen Type 181 in 1969. In 1960, upon the flotation of part of the German federal government 's stake in the company on the German stock market, its name became Volkswagenwerk Aktiengesellschaft (usually abbreviated to Volkswagenwerk AG ). On 1 January 1965, Volkswagenwerk acquired Auto Union GmbH from its parent company Daimler-Benz . The new subsidiary went on to produce

3366-521: The 4.2 L V8 engine . The V6s were replaced by new 2.4 L and 2.8 L 30V V6s in 1998, with marked improvement in power, torque and smoothness. Further engines were added along the way, including a 3.7 L V8 and 6.0 L W12 engine for the A8. Audi's sales grew strongly in the 2000s, with deliveries to customers increasing from 653,000 in 2000 to 1,003,000 in 2008. The largest sales increases came from Eastern Europe (+19.3%), Africa (+17.2%) and

3468-617: The Allies . With no prospect of continuing production in Soviet-controlled East Germany, Auto Union executives began the process of relocating what was left of the company to West Germany . A site was chosen in Ingolstadt , Bavaria , to start a spare parts operation in late 1945, which would eventually serve as the headquarters of the reformed Auto Union in 1949. On 17 August 1948, Auto Union AG of Chemnitz

3570-632: The Audi 60, 75, 80, and Super 90, selling until 1972. Initially, Volkswagen was hostile to the idea of Auto Union as a standalone entity producing its own models having acquired the company merely to boost its own production capacity through the Ingolstadt assembly plant—to the point where Volkswagen executives ordered that the Auto Union name and flags bearing the four rings were removed from the factory buildings. Then VW chief Heinz Nordhoff explicitly forbade Auto Union from any further product development. Fearing that Volkswagen had no long-term ambition for

3672-465: The Audi brand, Auto Union engineers under the leadership of Ludwig Kraus developed the first Audi 100 in secret, without Nordhoff's knowledge. When presented with a finished prototype, Nordhoff was so impressed he authorised the car for production, which when launched in 1968, went on to be a huge success. With this, the resurrection of the Audi brand was now complete, this being followed by the first generation Audi 80 in 1972, which would in turn provide

3774-421: The Audi unintended acceleration problems: "Once an unintended acceleration had begun, in the Audi 5000, due to a failure in the idle-stabilizer system (producing an initial acceleration of 0.3g), pedal misapplication resulting from panic, confusion, or unfamiliarity with the Audi 5000 contributed to the severity of the incident." This summary is consistent with the conclusions of NHTSA's most technical analysis at

3876-484: The Auto Union business, under a new owner, to embark on a period of profitable growth, now producing not Auto Unions or DKWs, but using the "Audi" name, resurrected in 1965 after a 25-year gap. In 1964, Volkswagen acquired a 50% holding in the business, which included the new factory in Ingolstadt, the DKW and Audi brands along with the rights to the new engine design which had been funded by Daimler-Benz, who in return retained

3978-575: The California Air Resources Board. About 482,000 vehicles are under the recall order, a potential $ 18 billion ($ 37,500 per violation) in fines are pending, and news accounts speculate a criminal indictment for the deception is certain. The VW Group CEO, Martin Winterkorn , said he was "deeply sorry" and ordered an external investigation. The software code was only revealed when the EPA refused to certify VW's 2016 models for sale in

4080-456: The German car market, while Audi held only 0.1%. After the final few Audis were delivered in 1939 the "Audi" name disappeared completely from the new car market for more than two decades. Richard Bruhn , a Nazi party member, was Auto Union's chairman of the board from 1932 to 1945 and then again after the war when the company was reestablished. In 2014 Audi became the last major German car company, after Volkswagen, BMW and Daimler, to commission

4182-451: The Horch brand belonged to his former company. Since August Horch was prohibited from using horch as a trade name in his new car business, he called a meeting with close business friends, Paul and Franz Fikentscher from Zwickau. At the apartment of Franz Fikentscher, they discussed how to come up with a new name for the company. During this meeting, Franz's son was quietly studying Latin in

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4284-660: The Illinois state and U.S. federal levels. In the mid-to-late 1990s, Audi introduced new technologies including the use of aluminium construction. Produced from 1999 to 2005, the Audi A2 was a futuristic super mini, born from the Al2 concept, with many features that helped regain consumer confidence, like the aluminium space frame , which was a first in production car design. In the A2 Audi further expanded their TDI technology through

4386-407: The Ingolstadt head office site. In 1958, in response to pressure from Friedrich Flick , then the company's largest single shareholder, Daimler-Benz took an 87% holding in the Auto Union company, and this was increased to a 100% holding in 1959. However, small two-stroke cars were not the focus of Daimler-Benz's interests, and while the early 1960s saw major investment in new Mercedes models and in

4488-527: The Middle East (+58.5%). China in particular has become a key market, representing 108,000 out of 705,000 cars delivered in the first three quarters of 2009. One factor for its popularity in China is that Audis have become the car of choice for purchase by the Chinese government for officials, and purchases by the government are responsible for 20% of its sales in China. As of late 2009, Audi's operating profit of €1.17 billion ($ 1.85 billion) made it

4590-552: The Type 60 Volkswagen (re-designated Type 1 ) started slowly after the war due to the need to rebuild the plant and because of the lack of raw materials, but production grew rapidly in the 1950s and 1960s. The company began introducing new models based on the Type 1, all with the same basic air-cooled, rear-engine, rear-drive platform. These included the Volkswagen Type 2 in 1950, the Volkswagen Karmann Ghia in 1955,

4692-552: The US unless the corporation provided full disclosure. On Sunday, 20 September 2015, VW Group announced it was halting the sale of its four-cylinder diesel models in the US. The US EPA press release on its Notice of Violation, and the California Air Resources Board letter dated 18 September 2015 contain significant chronological detail of the agencies interaction with VW on the issue. On 22 September 2015, VW AG admitted that 11 million cars worldwide had been fitted with software intended to deceive emissions testing . The company issued

4794-555: The United States fell after a series of recalls from 1982 to 1987 of Audi 5000 models associated with reported incidents of sudden unintended acceleration linked to six deaths and 700 accidents. At the time, NHTSA was investigating 50 car models from 20 manufacturers for sudden surges of power. A 60 Minutes report aired 23 November 1986, featuring interviews with six people who had sued Audi after reporting unintended acceleration, showing an Audi 5000 ostensibly suffering

4896-477: The United States for the 1970 model year. That same year, the mid-sized car that NSU had been working on, the K70 , originally intended to slot between the rear-engined Prinz models and the futuristic NSU Ro 80 , was instead launched as a Volkswagen. After the launch of the Audi 100 of 1968, the Audi 80 /Fox (which formed the basis for the 1973 Volkswagen Passat ) followed in 1972 and the Audi 50 (later rebadged as

4998-419: The Volkswagen Group are (as at the financial year ending March 3): Audi Audi AG ( German: [ˈaʊ̯di ʔaːˈɡeː] ) is a German automotive manufacturer of luxury vehicles headquartered in Ingolstadt , Bavaria, Germany. A subsidiary of the Volkswagen Group , Audi produces vehicles in nine production facilities worldwide. The origins of the company are complex, dating back to

5100-401: The Volkswagen portfolio in 1998: Bentley , Lamborghini , and Bugatti . On 30 May 2000, after having gradually raised its equity share, Volkswagen AG took over the full ownership of Škoda Auto, making the company a wholly owned subsidiary. From 2002 up to 2007, the Volkswagen Group's automotive division was restructured so that two major Brand Groups with different profile would be formed,

5202-566: The Volkswagen. Only a small number of Type 60 Volkswagens were made during this time. The Fallersleben plant also manufactured the V-1 flying bomb , making the plant a major bombing target for the Allied forces. Slave labour was utilised in the Volkswagen plant, e.g. from Arbeitsdorf concentration camp. The company would admit in 1998 that it used 15,000 slaves during the war effort. German historians estimated that 80% of Volkswagen's wartime workforce

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5304-628: The West German versions. West and East German models were equipped with the traditional and renowned DKW two-stroke engines. The Zwickau plant later manufactured the infamous Trabant until 1991, after it was acquired by the Volkswagen Group following the reunification of Germany, and has since been substantially rebuilt. In 2021, production of the Audi Q4 e-tron began at the plant, marking the return of Audis being manufactured at Zwickau after over 80 years. A new West German headquartered Auto Union

5406-486: The affected models—with the 5000 becoming the 100 and 200 in 1989 —and reached the same sales levels again only by model year 2000. A 2010 BusinessWeek article—outlining possible parallels between Audi's experience and 2009–2010 Toyota vehicle recalls —noted a class-action lawsuit filed in 1987 by about 7,500 Audi 5000-model owners remains unsettled and remains contested in Chicago 's Cook County after appeals at

5508-453: The biggest contributor to parent Volkswagen Group's nine-month operating profit of €1.5 billion, while the other marques in Group such as Bentley and SEAT had suffered considerable losses. May 2011 saw record sales for Audi of America with the new Audi A7 and Audi A3 TDI Clean Diesel. In May 2012, Audi reported a 10% increase in its sales—from 408 units to 480 in the last year alone. Audi manufactures vehicles in seven plants around

5610-475: The board of trustees. In September 1921, Audi became the first German car manufacturer to present a production car, the Audi Type K, with left-handed drive. Left-hand drive spread and established dominance during the 1920s because it provided a better view of oncoming traffic, making overtaking safer when driving on the right. In August 1928, Jørgen Rasmussen , the owner of Dampf-Kraft-Wagen (DKW), acquired

5712-417: The bomb-shattered factory for use in repairing British Army vehicles, pending the expected disposal of the plant tooling and equipment as war reparations . However, no British car manufacturer was interested. A British report on the car said that "the vehicle does not meet the fundamental technical requirement of a motor-car … it is quite unattractive to the average buyer … To build the car commercially would be

5814-535: The car that would become known as the Beetle . The company's production grew rapidly in the 1950s and 1960s. In 1965, it acquired Auto Union , which subsequently produced the first postwar Audi models. Volkswagen launched a new generation of front-wheel drive vehicles in the 1970s, including the Passat , Polo and Golf ; the latter became its bestseller. Volkswagen acquired a controlling stake in SEAT in 1986, making it

5916-414: The company submitted a patent for an electric vehicle recharger that is built into the road. The technology would allow electric vehicles to be charged as they drive over roads embedded with a recessed wireless recharging strip, using electromagnetic induction . Volkswagen Group Volkswagen AG ( German: [ˈfɔlksˌvaːɡn̩] ), known internationally as the Volkswagen Group ,

6018-458: The dormant Horch trademark and the Düsseldorf factory which became a Mercedes-Benz van assembly plant. Eighteen months later, Volkswagen bought complete control of Ingolstadt, and by 1966 were using the spare capacity of the Ingolstadt plant to assemble an additional 60,000 Volkswagen Beetles per year. Two-stroke engines became less popular during the 1960s as customers were more attracted to

6120-493: The early 20th century and the initial enterprises ( Horch and the Audiwerke ) founded by engineer August Horch . Two other manufacturers ( DKW and Wanderer ) also contributed to the foundation of Auto Union in 1932. The modern Audi era began in the 1960s, when Auto Union was acquired by Volkswagen from Daimler-Benz . After relaunching the Audi brand with the 1965 introduction of the Audi F103 series, Volkswagen merged Auto Union with NSU Motorenwerke in 1969, thus creating

6222-636: The end of 2022. According to VW Group CEO Dr. Herbert Diess , the company will offer 25 electric models and 20 plug-in hybrids by 2020. Volkswagen Group came under pressure for cooperating with the Chinese government in the region of Xinjiang . In that same region, western-funded NGOs accused the Chinese government of having committed human rights abuses against the Uyghur minority group, which included mass surveillance , incarceration, and forced labor. After these accusations emerged, Volkswagen responded, "We do not assume any of our employees are forced laborers." Süddeutsche Zeitung claimed that Volkswagen

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6324-435: The fatally flawed NSU Ro80 went out of production in 1977, spelling the effective end of the NSU brand. Production of the Audi 100 had been steadily moved from Ingolstadt to Neckarsulm as the 1970s had progressed, and by the appearance of the second generation C2 version in 1976, all production was now at the former NSU plant. Neckarsulm from that point onward would produce Audi's higher-end models. The Audi image at this time

6426-469: The first non-German marque of the company, and acquired control of Škoda in 1994, of Bentley, Lamborghini, and Bugatti in 1998, Scania in 2008 and of Ducati, MAN, and Porsche in 2012. The company's operations in China have grown rapidly in the past decade, with the country becoming its largest market. In 2015, Volkswagen was discovered to have used defeat devices to deceive environmental regulators about how much NO x its cars were emitting. The company

6528-477: The first post-war Audi models, the Audi F103 series, shortly afterwards. Another German manufacturer, NSU Motorenwerke AG , was merged into Auto Union on 26 August 1969, creating a new company, Audi NSU Auto Union AG (later renamed AUDI AG in 1985). From the late 1970s to 1992, the acronym V.A.G. was used by Volkswagen AG as a brand for group-wide activities, such as distribution and leasing. Contrary to popular belief, "V.A.G." had no official meaning, and

6630-470: The five-cylinder engine was a successful and robust powerplant, it was still a little too different for the target market. With the introduction of an all-new Audi 100 in 1992, Audi introduced a 2.8L V6 engine . This engine was also fitted to a face-lifted Audi 80 (all 80 and 90 models were now badged 80 except for the USA), giving this model a choice of four-, five-, and six-cylinder engines, in saloon , coupé and convertible body styles. The five-cylinder

6732-427: The following vehicle manufacturers and their corresponding brands : Here are the brands operated under the Volkswagen Group: Other subsidiaries and shareholdings: The Group also owns five defunct marques which are managed through the companies Auto Union GmbH and NSU GmbH, both of which are 100% owned by AUDI AG: In November 2018 Volkswagen's market capitalization was valued at US$ 73.8 billion. The key trends for

6834-521: The group's activities was made through the signing of a joint-venture partnership agreement with Škoda automobilová a.s. of Czechoslovakia , accompanied with the acquisition of a 30% stake in the Czech car manufacturer on 16 April 1991. On 19 December 1994, the group began the acquisition of Škoda Auto by raising its share to 60.3%. Later, on 11 December 1995, it became the Czech company's largest and controlling shareholder by increasing its share up to 70%. Three prestige automotive marques were added to

6936-458: The historical trademarks and intellectual property of the original constituent companies (the exception being Horch, which had been retained by Daimler-Benz after the VW takeover), and to operate Audi's heritage operations. In 1986, as the Passat-based Audi 80 was beginning to develop a kind of "grandfather's car" image, the type 89 was introduced. This completely new development sold extremely well. However, its modern and dynamic exterior belied

7038-433: The ideas of Felix Wankel . In 1967, the new NSU Ro 80 was a car well ahead of its time in technical details such as aerodynamics, light weight, and safety. However, teething problems with the rotary engines put an end to the independence of NSU. The Neckarsulm plant is now used to produce the larger Audi models A6 and A8 . The Neckarsulm factory is also home of the " quattro GmbH " (from November 2016 " Audi Sport GmbH "),

7140-484: The largest car manufacturer in the world by revenue. The Volkswagen Group sells passenger cars under the Audi , Bentley , Cupra , Jetta , Lamborghini , Porsche , SEAT , Škoda and Volkswagen brands, motorcycles under the Ducati name, light commercial vehicles under the Volkswagen Commercial Vehicles brand, and heavy commercial vehicles via the marques of the listed subsidiary Traton ( International Motors , MAN , Scania and Volkswagen Truck & Bus ). It

7242-513: The low performance of its base engine, and its base package was quite spartan (even the passenger-side mirror was an option). In 1987, Audi put forward a new and very elegant Audi 90 , which had a much superior set of standard features. In the early 1990s, sales began to slump for the Audi 80 series, and some basic construction problems started to surface. Through the early 1990s, Audi began to shift its target market upscale to compete against German automakers Mercedes-Benz and BMW . This began with

7344-701: The majority of shares in Audiwerke AG. In the same year, Rasmussen bought the remains of the U.S. automobile manufacturer Rickenbacker , including the manufacturing equipment for 8-cylinder engines. These engines were used in Audi Zwickau and Audi Dresden models that were launched in 1929. At the same time, 6-cylinder and 4-cylinder ( the "four" with a Peugeot engine) models were manufactured. Audi cars of that era were luxurious cars equipped with special bodywork. In 1932, Audi merged with Horch , DKW, and Wanderer , to form Auto Union AG, Chemnitz . It

7446-551: The present-day form of the company. The company name is based on the Latin translation of the surname of the founder, August Horch . Horch , meaning 'listen', becomes audi in Latin. The four rings of the Audi logo each represent one of four car companies that banded together to create Audi's predecessor company, Auto Union. Audi's slogan is Vorsprung durch Technik , which is translated as 'Progress through Technology'. Audi, along with German brands BMW and Mercedes-Benz ,

7548-477: The purchase of 19.9% of Suzuki Motor Corporation 's issued shares on 15 January 2010. Suzuki invested part of the amount received from Volkswagen into 1.49% percent of Volkswagen. In 2011, Suzuki filed a lawsuit at an arbitration court in London requesting that Volkswagen return the 19.9% stake. On 25 May 2010, it was announced that Volkswagen Group, through its subsidiary Lamborghini Holding S.p.A., had acquired

7650-554: The release of the Audi V8 in 1990. It was essentially a new engine fitted to the Audi 100/200, but with noticeable bodywork differences. Most obvious was the new grille that was now incorporated in the bonnet. By 1991, Audi had the four-cylinder Audi 80, the 5-cylinder Audi 90 and Audi 100 , the turbocharged Audi 200 and the Audi V8. There was also a coupé version of the 80/90 with both four- and five-cylinder engines. Although

7752-566: The remaining half of Porsche shares for 4.46 billion euros (US$ 5.58 billion) on 1 August 2012 to avoid taxes of as much as 1.5 billion euros, which would have to be paid if the wrap up happened after 31 July 2014. Volkswagen AG purchased the remaining stake in Porsche AG equaling 100% of the shares in Porsche Zwischenholding GmbH, effectively becoming its parent company as of 1 August 2012. Volkswagen AG completed

7854-539: The research from the public domain. On 3 August 2015, Nokia announced that it had reached a deal to sell its Here digital maps division to a consortium of three German automakers— BMW , Daimler AG , and Volkswagen Group, for €2.8 billion. This was seen as an indication that the automakers were interested in automated cars. Volkswagen held a 19.9% non-controlling shareholding in Suzuki between 2009 and 2015. An international arbitration court ordered Volkswagen to sell

7956-507: The scandal. In its own financial report for 2023 Volkswagen Group estimated its long, medium and short term debt at 155,6 Billion Euros. It is unclear how Volkswagen group plans to pay off that massive debt considering its falling global vehicle deliveries , planned closure of at least 3 factories in Germany after it previously closed 2 factories in Russia as well as 64% drop in profit for

8058-518: The smoother four-stroke engines. In September 1965, the DKW F102 was fitted with a four-stroke engine and a facelift for the car's front and rear. Volkswagen dumped the DKW brand because of its associations with two-stroke technology, and having classified the model internally as the F103 , sold it simply as the "Audi". Later developments of the model were named after their horsepower ratings and sold as

8160-823: The stake back to Suzuki. On 17 September 2015, Suzuki paid $ 3.8bn to complete the stock buy-back just hours prior to a major scandal about emissions violations engulfing Volkswagen. Suzuki had wished to buy Fiat diesel engines. In 2021, Volkswagen sold their 55% stake in Bugatti to Rimac Group while transferring the remaining 45% to Porsche AG , forming a joint venture company called Bugatti Rimac . In early 2024, Volkswagen Group began looking for partners among international technology corporations to create AI labs, new digital prototypes of products and functions using artificial intelligence. In October 2024, Volkswagen plans to close at least three plants in Germany and cut jobs, facing challenges from delayed EV investments and

8262-454: The supervisory board of Volkswagen AG approved the acquisition of assets of Karmann, and planned to restart vehicle production at their Osnabrück plant in 2012. In December 2009, Volkswagen AG bought a 49.9% stake in Dr. Ing. h.c. F. Porsche AG (more commonly known as Porsche AG) in a first step towards an 'integrated automotive group' with Porsche. The merger of Volkswagen AG and Porsche SE

8364-863: The three months to the end of September 2024. Latest setback for Volkswagen came on November 21, 2024 when Swedish battery producer Northvolt filed for bankruptcy, Volkswagen previously invested 1,4 Billion Euros in their failed business. On November 27, 2024 Volkswagen announced sale of it's Xinijang factory in China partly because "demand for combustion engine vehicles is going down". Former member of Croatian parliament Ivan Pernar warned that due to overall financial situation Volkswagen might go bankrupt just as "too big to fail" heavily indebted Evergrande Group . He also questioned how will EU tariffs on Chinese cars save Volkswagen when 50% of its sales are in China itself and not in EU, as well as its manangment decision to exit Russian market. In 2016, Volkswagen Group announced

8466-443: The time: "Audi idle-stabilization systems were prone to defects which resulted in excessive idle speeds and brief unanticipated accelerations of up to 0.3g [which is similar in magnitude to an emergency stop in a subway car]. These accelerations could not be the sole cause of [(long-duration) sudden acceleration incidents (SAI)], but might have triggered some SAIs by startling the driver. The defective idle-stabilization system performed

8568-526: The use of frugal three-cylinder engines. The A2 was extremely aerodynamic and was designed around a wind tunnel . The Audi A2 was criticised for its high price and was never really a sales success but it planted Audi as a cutting-edge manufacturer. The model, a Mercedes-Benz A-Class competitor, sold relatively well in Europe. However, the A2 was discontinued in 2005 and Audi decided not to develop an immediate replacement. The next major model change came in 1995 when

8670-421: The viability of all-wheel-drive racecars, and the Audi name became associated with advances in automotive technology. In 1985, with the Auto Union and NSU brands effectively dead, the company's official name was now shortened to simply Audi AG . At the same time the company's headquarters moved back to Ingolstadt and two new wholly owned subsidiaries; Auto Union GmbH and NSU GmbH , were formed to own and manage

8772-509: The world, some of which are shared with other VW Group marques although many sub-assemblies such as engines and transmissions are manufactured within other Volkswagen Group plants. Audi's two principal assembly plants in Germany are: Outside of Germany, Audi produces vehicles at: In September 2012, Audi announced the construction of its first North American manufacturing plant in Puebla , Mexico. This plant became operative in 2016 and produces

8874-499: Was a conservative one, and so, a proposal from chassis engineer Jörg Bensinger was accepted to develop the four-wheel drive technology in Volkswagen 's Iltis military vehicle for an Audi performance car and rally racing car. The performance car, introduced in 1980, was named the " Audi Quattro ", a turbocharged coupé which was also the first German large-scale production vehicle to feature permanent all-wheel drive through

8976-688: Was based on transitioning to electric cars , and building a shared platform, battery systems, software and mobility solutions to use across all their brands. This involves creating the Scalable Systems Platform , as well as developing software under a new subsidiary called CARIAD . Volkswagen Group aims by 2024 to transition to selling mostly electric cars. It aims to have six battery factories in Europe by 2030. In 2023, Volkswagen Group announced plans to cut costs by €10 billion ($ 11.1 billion). In February 2024, Volkswagen Group and Chinese electric vehicle manufacturer XPeng signed

9078-572: Was deleted from the commercial register. These actions had the effect of liquidating Germany's Auto Union AG. The remains of the Audi plant of Zwickau became the VEB (for "People Owned Enterprise") Automobilwerk Zwickau or AWZ (in English: Automobile Works Zwickau). The former Audi factory in Zwickau restarted assembly of the pre-war models in 1949. These DKW models were renamed to IFA F8 and IFA F9 and were similar to

9180-463: Was designed by Ferdinand Porsche 's consulting firm, and the company was backed by the support of Adolf Hitler . On 16 September 1938, Gezuvor was renamed Volkswagenwerk GmbH ('Volkswagen Factory GmbH'). Shortly after the factory at Fallersleben was completed World War II started, and the plant primarily manufactured the military Kübelwagen (Porsche Type 82) and the related amphibious Schwimmwagen (Type 166), both of which were derived from

9282-538: Was during this period that the company offered the Audi Front that became the first European car to combine a six-cylinder engine with front-wheel drive. It used a power train shared with the Wanderer, but turned 180 degrees, so that the drive shaft faced the front. Before World War II , Auto Union used the four interlinked rings that make up the Audi badge today, representing these four brands. However, this badge

9384-574: Was enthusiastically accepted by everyone attending the meeting. On 25 April 1910 the Audi Automobilwerke GmbH Zwickau (from 1915 on Audiwerke AG Zwickau ) was entered in the company's register of Zwickau registration court. The first Audi automobile, the Audi Type A 10/22 hp (16 kW) Sport-Phaeton, was produced in the same year, followed by the successor Type B 10/28PS in the same year. Audi started with

9486-613: Was fined billions of dollars. Volkswagen Aktiengesellschaft is a public company and has a primary listing on the Frankfurt Stock Exchange , where it is a constituent of the Euro Stoxx 50 stock market index , and secondary listings on the Luxembourg Stock Exchange and SIX Swiss Exchange . It has been traded in the United States via American depositary receipts since 1988, currently on

9588-583: Was launched in Ingolstadt with loans from the Bavarian state government and Marshall Plan aid. The reformed company was launched 3 September 1949 and continued DKW's tradition of producing front-wheel drive vehicles with two-stroke engines. This included production of a small but sturdy 125 cc motorcycle and a DKW delivery van, the DKW F89 L at Ingolstadt. The Ingolstadt site was large, consisting of an extensive complex of formerly military buildings which

9690-621: Was never the formal name of the Volkswagen Group. On 30 September 1982, Volkswagenwerk made its first step expanding outside Germany by signing a co-operation agreement with the Spanish car manufacturer SEAT, S.A. To reflect the company's increasing global diversification from its headquarters and main plant (the Volkswagenwerk in Wolfsburg ), on 4 July 1985, the company name was changed again—to Volkswagen Aktiengesellschaft (Volkswagen AG). On 18 June 1986, Volkswagen AG acquired

9792-460: Was operating a plant in Xinjiang at a loss in order to curry favor with the Chinese government to set up more lucrative plants in other parts of China, which Volkswagen denied, saying that the decision to set up the plant in 2012 was purely based on economics. Volkswagen is still operating a plant in the region as of 2020. In 2021, Volkswagen Group released their New Auto strategy. The strategy

9894-614: Was scheduled to take place during the course of 2011. On 8 September 2011, it was announced that the planned merger "cannot be implemented within the time frame provided for in the Comprehensive Agreement". As reasons, unquantifiable legal risks, including a criminal probe into the holding's former management team were given. Both parties "remain committed to the goal of creating an integrated automotive group with Porsche and are convinced that this will take place". On 4 July 2012 Volkswagen group announced they would wrap up

9996-557: Was slave labour. Many of the slaves were reported to have been supplied from the concentration camps upon request from plant managers. A lawsuit was filed in 1998 by survivors for restitution for the forced labour. Volkswagen would set up a voluntary restitution fund. After the war in Europe, in June 1945, Major Ivan Hirst of the British Army Royal Electrical and Mechanical Engineers (REME) took control of

10098-662: Was soon dropped as a major engine choice; however, a turbocharged 220 PS (160 kW; 220 hp) version remained. The engine, initially fitted to the 200 quattro 20V of 1991, was a derivative of the engine fitted to the Sport Quattro . It was fitted to the Audi Coupé , named the S2 , and also to the Audi 100 body, and named the S4 . These two models were the beginning of the mass-produced S series of performance cars. Sales in

10200-529: Was suitable for administration as well as vehicle warehousing and distribution, but at this stage there was at Ingolstadt no dedicated plant suitable for mass production of automobiles: for manufacturing the company's first post-war mass-market passenger car plant capacity in Düsseldorf was rented from Rheinmetall-Borsig . It was only ten years later, after the company had attracted an investor, when funds became available for construction of major car plant at

10302-481: Was the world's largest automaker by sales, and keeping this title in 2017, 2018, and 2019, selling 10.9 million vehicles and was the largest automaker by revenue in 2022. It has maintained the largest market share in Europe for over two decades. It ranked seventh in the 2020 Fortune Global 500 list of the world's largest companies. In 2023, Volkswagen Group was the largest company in the European Union and

10404-436: Was used only on Auto Union racing cars in that period while the member companies used their own names and emblems. The technological development became more and more concentrated and some Audi models were propelled by Horch- or Wanderer-built engines. Reflecting the economic pressures of the time, Auto Union concentrated increasingly on smaller cars through the 1930s, so that by 1938 the company's DKW brand accounted for 17.9% of

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