In 2011 Škoda sold a record number of 875, 000 cars, and it stated that it aimed to double its sales by 2018, as part of the Volkswagen Group's plan to become the largest car maker in the world.

Recent forced induction V6 engines have delivered horsepower and torque output comparable to contemporary larger displacement, naturally aspirated V8 engines, while reducing fuel consumption and emissions, such as the Volkswagen Group's 3. 0 TFSI which is supercharged and directly injected, and Ford Motor Company's turbocharged and directly injected EcoBoost V6, both of which have been compared to Volkswagen's 4. 2 V8 engine.

The Phaeton debuted at prices comparable to similar offerings from Mercedes-Benz, BMW, Lexus and the Volkswagen Group's own Audi A8 ( which shared its powertrain with the Phaeton ).

While all three ultra-luxury marques share platforms and engines with other luxury brands from their parent auto company, Maybachs are built alongside the Mercedes-Benz S-Class flagship sedan, whereas Rolls-Royce and Bentley are assembled in England ( separate from the rest of BMW and Volkswagen Group's production plants ) and thus are regarded as being more " exclusive ".

Available engines were the 1. 4 litre 16 valve petrol engine which produced a, a 1. 6 litre 8 valve petrol engine ( replaced later with a 16 valve unit ), and included two variants of the Volkswagen Group's 20 valve turbocharged 1. 8 litre powerplant, ( with some countries also getting the 2. 8 litre VR6 engine delivering.

A range of Turbocharged Direct Injection ( TDI ) diesel engines was available, including a version of Volkswagen Group's 1. 9 TDI engine, originally sold as a " Cupra 4 TDI ", with 4WD, that was sold for one year only, and only in certain countries, then passed to " Evolution " series, then " Top Sport ", and later rebranded as the " FR " (' Formula Racing ').

, the T2 is built at the Volkswagen Group's São Bernardo do Campo plant at a rate of 97 per day.

Following the Volkswagen Group's acquisition of Audi in 1964, Volkswagen used new engineering expertise to develop a modern front-wheel drive car with a water-cooled engine, and thus the Passat and Golf ( the latter being introduced in 1974 ) were the first of a new generation of Volkswagen cars.

This engine was intended to be a test bed for Volkswagen Group's new W engine technology, which would later make an appearance on the W12 in the Phaeton and Audi A8, and the W16 engine in the Bugatti Veyron.

It was based on the European version of the Ford Escort, being the result of Volkswagen Group's AutoLatina joint venture with Ford Motor Company, which also saw the Volkswagen Santana rebadged as the Ford Versailles.

A wide range of internal combustion engines were available in European markets, between 1. 6 and 2. 8 litres for petrol engines ; and a 1. 9 litre diesel engine available with Volkswagen Group's VE technology, capable of achieving a or, although Audi's 2. 8 litre V6 engine, carried over from the old 80 / 90 was the only engine option in North America until 1997.

While very few cars share the same bodywork, nearly all Audis use components from their more pedestrian counterparts, sold as Volkswagen Group's mass market brands.

Due to this distinction, the Volkswagen Group's W12 engine is sometimes described as a " WR12 ".

Since Volkswagen Group's first mainstream transverse engined vehicle in 1974, four-wheel drive ( 4WD ) has also been considered for their A-platform family of cars.

Volkswagen Group's design is a stretched form of its W12 engine, which is itself based on technology from its VR6 engine.

Volkswagen Group's W12 engines utilise two VR6-like sets of cylinders mated at 72 degrees, and the W8 engine consisted of two VR4 engines at the 72-degree angle.

The car is based on Volkswagen Group's A5 ( PQ35 ) platform.

The Galaxy used predominantly Volkswagen Group mechanicals, most notably the 2. 8 litre VR6 petrol engine from the top versions of the Volkswagen Golf, as well as Volkswagen Group's 1. 9 litre Turbocharged Direct Injection ( TDI ) turbodiesel unit.

In 1976, Volkswagen ceased Australian assembly operations, their factory in Clayton, Victoria was sold to Nissan Australia ( which is now occupied by Holden Special Vehicles ), and all Volkswagens were once again fully imported.

The inaugural Australian Rallycross Championship was held at the Tailem Bend circuit on 24 June 1979 and was won by Larry Perkins, driving a 2. 0-litre Volkswagen Beetle for Kruger Motors.

With falling sales, the fuel crisis and the instability of the Australian economy, all European brands, such as, Renault and Volkswagen, ceased local assembly.

After his return from Europe, England used the Ausca, later with Volkswagen power, to win three Australian Hillclimb Championships, in 1970, 1973 and 1974.

Two female Central Washington students later came forward to report encounters — one on the night of Rancourt's disappearance, the other three nights earlier — with a man wearing an arm sling, asking for help carrying a load of books to his brown or tan Volkswagen Beetle.

Punch buggy ( also called punch bug, punch dub, piggy punch, slug bug, or beetle bug ) is a car game generally played by children in which participants punch each other in the arm upon first sight of a Volkswagen Beetle while calling out " Slug bug!

Semi-trailing arm suspension of a 1969 Volkswagen Beetle

Rear swing axle suspension with reduction gearing from the discontinued split-screen Volkswagen Transporter was used until 1973, when it was replaced with double-jointed axles used by Porsche and IRS semi-trailing arm setup as used on the 1303 and US-spec Beetles.

The track is in part a tribute to performance artist Chris Burden, who was famous for having himself nailed to a Volkswagen in 1974 (" Nail me to my car and I'll tell you who you are ") and for having an assistant shoot him in the arm at an art gallery in 1971 (" Guess you'll buy a gun / You'll buy it secondhand ").

Auto Union came under Daimler-Benz ownership in 1957, and was then purchased by the Volkswagen Group in 1964.

The Ford and the Volkswagen Group JV Auto-Europa similarly co-developed models on a common chassis and built them in a shared-plant in Palmela, Portugal.

In August 2009, Porsche SE and Volkswagen AG reached an agreement that the two companies would merge in 2011, to form an " Integrated Automotive Group ".

A short time later he moved to Audi, and pursued his career through the entire company, up to and including, the Volkswagen Group boards.

Ferdinand Porsche's grandson, Ferdinand Piëch, was chairman and CEO of the Volkswagen Group from 1993 to 2002.

The company has always had a close relationship with, initially, the Volkswagen ( VW ) marque, and later, the Volkswagen Group ( which also owns Audi AG ), because the first Volkswagen Beetle was designed by Ferdinand Porsche.

The Cayenne, introduced in 2002, shares its entire chassis with Volkswagen Touareg and Audi Q7, which is built at the Volkswagen Group factory in Bratislava.

In late 2005, Porsche took an 18. 65 % stake in the Volkswagen Group, further cementing their relationship, and preventing a takeover of Volkswagen Group, which was rumoured at the time.

Porsche then formally announced in a press statement that it did not intend to take over Volkswagen Group ( it would set its offer price at the lowest possible legal value ) but intended the move to avoid a competitor taking a large stake, and to stop hedge funds dismantling Volkswagen Group, which is Porsche's most important partner.

Porsche dismissed the bid as a mere formality, since it is Porsche's intention to keep the corporate structure of the Volkswagen Group.

There has been some tension and anxiety amongst the Volkswagen Group workers, who fear that a Porsche takeover might signify a hardened production efficiency control, rejection of demands for payment rises or even personnel cuts.

One day later Porsche sought to allay fears it would attempt to force a merger with Volkswagen Group.

Volkswagen Group expected the move, and welcomed Porsche's investment.

Porsche SE owned 50. 8 percent of Volkswagen Group as of 5 January 2009, and has said it plans to lift the stake to 75 percent before the end of 2009, at that level they could bring VW AG's cash onto Porsche's books.

The supervisory board of Porsche finally agreed to a number of arrangements whereby the Qatar Investment Authority would inject a large amount of capital, and Porsche would be merged with Volkswagen Group.

Škoda became a wholly owned subsidiary of the Volkswagen Group in 2000, positioned as the entry brand to the group.