Volkswagen has a fresh lineup with a facelifted Golf, Jetta, and Taos. If that wasn’t enough new blood, the company launched a redesigned Tiguan not long ago.

While you’d expect these models to help boost sales, this couldn’t be further from the truth. Quite the opposite as the only vehicles that posted gains last year were fully electric.

More: VW ID.4 Gets A Stealthy Blackout Package But Something Bigger Waits In The Shadows

This is a tad surprising, but consumers rushed to take advantage of the expiring tax credit. This resulted in a significant boost in the third quarter as ID.4 sales skyrocketed 176% to 12,470 units.

Now, with the tax credit gone, sales of the electric crossover plunged 61.6% to a mere 248 vehicles. That’s a massive swing of 12,222 units in just six months.

While sales have fallen off a cliff, the ID.4 finished the year up 31.4%. However, that pales in comparison to the ID. Buzz, which jumped 428.4%. That being said, Volkswagen only moved 6,140 electric vans and has already announced the EV is skipping the 2026 model year.

The picture gets pretty bleak from there as every other vehicles saw sales decline last year. The Jetta was off by 24.4%, while the Golf GTI and R dropped by up to 34.7%.

VW US SALES 2025

Even the brand’s crossovers struggled as the Atlas and Atlas Coupe only generated a combined 102,608 sales. The Taos was down 13.6%, while the Tiguan dropped 16.7% as some buyers likely held off for the redesigned model.

For the year, Volkswagen sold 329,813 vehicles in the United States. That’s down 13% and it means the brand was outsold by Mazda (410,346).

Audi Had Another Dismal Year

Things were even worse at Audi, which saw sales fall 16% to 164,942 units. That means they were beaten by Cadillac (173,515), Lexus (370,260), and BMW (388,897).

The numbers are terrible as the only models that saw gains were the aging A7 (5%) and Q8 (5%). The Q6 e-tron shot up 1,681%, although that’s mostly due to a late launch and limited supply last year.

That being said, the model appears to be a hit as consumers snapped up 17,207 units. This is more than three times the number of Q4 e-trons sold as sales were down 38% to a modest 5,264.

Speaking of EVs, the e-tron GT tumbled 59%, while the new A6 e-tron Sportback found 3,931 buyers. The discontinued Q8 e-tron lineup is also getting pretty rare and this explains why sales have fallen off the map.

The rest of the numbers should be given some context as Audi is in the midst of a major product revamp. As a result, there’s a new A5, A6, Q3, and Q5. Most of these models are already on sale in the United States, but the Q3 arrives shortly.

That being said, there are still a number of outdated models weighing sales down. One of the worst offenders is the Q7, which saw sales drop 12% last year to a disappointing 18,381 units. To put that into perspective, Lexus sold 57,346 TX crossovers.

Several months after VW was sued in the United States over claims the capacitive steering wheel buttons of the ID. 4 pose a safety risk, the company has filed a motion to dismiss.

A case like this can gather momentum long before it reaches a courtroom, so VW is trying to shut it down before it turns into a long, expensive tangle.

Read: VW Drivers Say They’re Terrified Of Touching Their Steering Wheels, So They’re Suing

The class-action lawsuit, filed in the U.S. District Court for the District of New Jersey, argues that drivers can inadvertently trigger Adaptive Cruise Control with a light pass of the hand over the steering wheel’s capacitive controls.

The two plaintiffs named in the lawsuit say they are “terrified and hesitant” to drive their vehicles because of this risk.

What Does VW Say?

While no doubt inadvertently engaging a vehicle’s Adaptive Cruise Control system could be a little unnerving, VW has noted that neither of the two plaintiffs has had to stop driving their vehicles because of the alleged fault.

One plaintiff, Janice Beecher, says she brushed the ACC button while pulling into a parking space, claiming the ID.4 then accelerated and struck a tree. VW counters that Beecher never stated she applied the brakes during the incident.

The company adds that although Beecher reported the issue, the ID.4’s event data recorder did not capture any sign that the event occurred.

As for the second plaintiff, Omar Hakkaoui, he says his wife damaged their ID.4 after it suddenly accelerated in their driveway. However, according to VW, Hakkaoui has not claimed that his wife touched the ACC controls on the steering wheel.

The German automaker argues that the class action’s warranty claims fall short and that the plaintiffs have not clearly identified the defect they believe affects the electric crossover.

It also maintains that the lawsuit should not go forward as a class action because the plaintiffs live in Massachusetts and Connecticut and cannot represent owners who live outside those states.