Currently Volkswagen concern is the largest car manufacturer in Europe and the second largest in the world.
Today, the German group, which once started with the production of ultra-budget "Beetles", offers products for any buyer. All this thanks to the unification of several brands under a single management.
The group's corporate portfolio includes eight legendary brands, most of which at one time found themselves in a difficult financial situation. The companies were forced to make an alliance with the German manufacturer as it was a matter of their survival.
Volkswagen
The brand was founded by Adolf Hitler in 1938. Today it specializes in the mass segment. The most famous models: Golf, Passat, Polo, Tiguan.
Audi
Specializing in the premium segment. The brand was merged with Volkswagen in 1964. The most famous models: A4, A6, R8. In 1993, the management company Audi AG acquired the Ducati and Lamborghini brands, while remaining the property of Volkswagen.
Porsche
Specializes in premium and super premium segments. Although he was one of the founders of the first Volkswagen plant, the company he created joined the German giant only in 2007. Today the allies are each other's mutual shareholders. The most famous models: Cayenne, Panamera.
Bentley
In 1929, the English manufacturer of premium cars was sold to Rolls-Royce. In 1997, after the financial crisis, the Rolls-Royce brand was sold to BMW, and Brand Bentley got Volkswagen. The most famous models: Continental GT, Flying Spur.
Skoda
This brand survived the German occupation, the Soviet era and was merged with Volkswagen in 1991. Change of strategic partner allowed to increase production by 5 times. Today Skoda specializes in mass budget segment. The most famous models: Octavia, Fabia, Yeti.
SEAT
In 1986 due to financial difficulties Italian concern FIAT sold 99.9% of the shares of the Spanish automaker to the Volkswagen group. Today the brand specializes in the mass segment. The most famous models: Ibiza, Leon.
Lamborghini
At the turn of the 60-70s. of the last century, the Italian sports car manufacturer has changed hands several times. In 1998, the brand was bought by Audi AG and ended up under the wing of Volkswagen. The most famous models: Aventador, Huracan.
Bugatti
In 1956, this legendary brand actually ceased to exist. In the late 80s, the Italian entrepreneur Romano Artioli revived production and in 1998 sold the asset to the Volkswagen concern. Today the brand specializes in the super premium segment. The most famous model: Veyron.
What other companies belong to Volkswagen
- MAN- truck manufacturer truck tractors, dump trucks, buses, hybrid and diesel engines;
- Scania– manufacturer of trucks, truck tractors, dump trucks, buses and diesel engines;
- Volkswagen Commercial Vehicles– manufacturer of commercial vehicles (buses, minibuses, tractors);
- Ducati Motor– motorcycle manufacturer;
- ItalDesign Giugiaro- car design studio
For some time there were rumors about Volkswagen's intention to buy the Italian-American alliance Fiat-Chrysler in order to become the world's largest automaker, but this deal did not take place.
Concern "Volkswagen" is by far the largest in the world. The VW Group owns many popular car companies and produces amazing cars that are in demand in all developed countries. Well, we should tell more about this largest concern.
The Volkswagen concern, or rather its headquarters, is located in Germany, in Wolfsburg. This name is translated as “people's car”. Very symbolic, because these cars are really in great demand.
Interestingly, as of September 2011, the concern's voting shares in the amount of 50.73% belong to a no less famous German holding. Which, as you might guess, is the Porsche SE. However, it should be noted that the concern "Volkswagen" owns all 100% of the ordinary shares of this holding. For a long time, negotiations were underway to combine VW and Porsche into a single structure. It was planned that it would be called that - VW-Porsche. But this did not happen (a little later this will be discussed).
Interestingly, Martin Winterkorn was both one and the second concern. But in September last, 2015, it ceased to be such.
The Volkswagen concern consists of as many as 342 companies that produce cars and provide other services related to cars. It's really impressive.
The beginning of the story
So, before talking about the composition of the Volkswagen concern, it is worth briefly telling about its history. Its creator is Ferdinand Porsche. In 1938, the first VW plant was built. Naturally, it was in Wolfsburg.
In 1960, on August 22, an LLC called Volkswagen Plants appeared. After the FRG was founded, this society became owned and the name was changed. On the traditional, which remains unchanged to this day. After that, Volkswagen AG began to engage not only in the manufacture of cars and motorcycles, but also in the provision of logistics and financial services. Moreover, this concern even had a small food production enterprise.
Further activities
The nineties were difficult years for many countries. Germany was no exception, and the concern - even more so. Volkswagen cars continued to be popular, but the company still experienced certain difficulties. But Ferdinand Piech, hired as a crisis manager, literally saved the firm. Until 2015, he led the financial processes. And it was this man who decided to expand the Volkswagen concern. The composition that we know today could not exist if Piech were not so enterprising and far-sighted.
In the late nineties, the company became even more famous, as then the Volkswagen Bentley division appeared, which produced Rolls-Royce cars. True, together with the Munich BMW, which then owned the rights to this brand. Since 2003, Volkswagen has not been doing this anymore - the BMW concern has finally bought out the Rolls-Royce brand.
Agreement with Suzuki
The brands of the Volkswagen concern are diverse, but many were surprised by the fact that in December 2009 the German company decided to create an alliance with the Japanese company Suzuki. But nothing much happened. The concerns simply exchanged shares (1/5 of all shares went to the German company Japanese company). And then they made an announcement for the joint development of special cars that can be safely classified as environmentally friendly. But the alliance did not last long. Not even two years had passed before the press officially announced that the companies had decided to break off business relations. It happened in 2011, in September.
Units established in the 20th century
The Volkswagen concern is the largest in Germany. Its main division is considered to be Volkswagen itself, which produces high-quality passenger cars. This group is not formalized as a subsidiary joint-stock company. This firm reports directly to the management of the concern itself.
One of the most popular brands is also "Audi". Her Wolfsburg concern bought from Daimler-Benz a very long time ago - in 1964, to be more precise. Then, another company entered the Audi Division, bought five years later, in 1969. And it was NSU Motorenwerke. True, it did not exist on its own for so long - only until 1977.
In 1986 a new acquisition was made. The concern bought Seat (53 percent). To date, the Wolfsburg Corporation owns 99.99% of all these shares. That is, in fact, the Spanish company became the property of the German concern. Then, in 1991, VW also bought Skoda.
Divisions that arose in the late 90s
Separately, I would like to say about Volkswagen Commercial Vehicles. This is an independent division, whose activities are controlled by the VW Group. However, it became such only after 1995, thanks to the efforts of the previous chairman of the board of the group, who was Bernd Weideman. Prior to this, the current division was part of the VW Group. Today it produces tractors, buses and minibuses.
In 1998, the concern acquired a company that is one that produces truly luxurious and rich cars. And it's a Bentley. The German concern acquired the British company together with Rolls-Royce, which was then sold to BMW (as described above).
Immediately after the Bentley, Bugatti and Lamborghini were acquired. The Italian company was bought not by the Volkswagen concern itself, but by its subsidiary Audi. 1998 was remembered for really weighty and significant transactions.
Other divisions
Volkswagen cars are known all over the world. The magnate produces really good, high-quality, reliable, comfortable and beautiful cars. But the concern also sells dump trucks, buses, trucks, tractors and diesel engines. They are produced by Scania AB, which VW Group bought in 2009. About 71 percent of the company's shares belong to the Wolfsburg concern.
Another no less famous manufacturer of truck tractors, as well as other Vehicle is MAN AG. Its controlling stake is also owned by a German company, and has been for five years now.
Now about Porsche. It was mentioned at the beginning, but it is worth returning to this topic. 49.9% of the shares of this company belonged to the VW Group in 2009. Then negotiations were held on the merger of these two powerful companies into a single entity. But this did not happen. VW Group still bought Porsche. Thus, the popular manufacturer became the 12th brand in the group. The purchase cost the Wolfsburg representatives almost 4.5 billion euros. I also had to “attach” one of my shares (ordinary) from above.
The company also owns the most popular manufacturer Motor Holding S.p.A.) and the studio ItalDesign Giugiaro. It was also bought not by the VW Group, but by Lamborghini. The rest of the shares (9.9%) continued to be the property of the relatives of Giorgetto Giugiaro (one of the founders of the atelier).
Case 2015
In September last year, there was a major scandal around the concern "Volkswagen". Then it turned out that about 11 million machines running on diesel units, had software that was activated during testing. This software significantly reduced the amount of harmful gases emitted into the atmosphere. It turned out that the level of emitted nitrogen oxides is actually very high. This scandal around the concern "Volkswagen" flared up very quickly. The company has pleaded not guilty.
This software was installed on models with TDI units (series 288, 189 and 188). Cars were produced for 7 incomplete years - from 2008 to 2015. Such “defective” models turned out to be the well-known “Golfs” of the sixth generation, “Trade Winds” (seventh), as well as “Tiguan”, “Jetta”, Beetle and even “Audi A3”.
The violation was discovered while a research team from the University of West Virginia was studying the composition of exhaust gases that entered the atmosphere while driving.
Fine and punishment
Naturally, a fine was imposed on the Volkswagen concern for this. In total, the amount amounted to about 18 billion dollars. The calculation was made based on the number of cars. And the amount to be paid for one “defective” car is approximately $37,500. Yes, a considerable fine was awarded to the Volkswagen concern.
Another of the consequences can be noted a significant decrease in prices set for the shares of the concern. Many experts said that this case could affect the engineering industry of the whole country. Allegedly, the confidence of potential buyers may fall significantly in relation to cars produced in Germany, and the famous “ German quality” now will not be so reference.
So far, however, these predictions have not come true. Yes, and they are unlikely to come true. After all, German companies produce really good cars in all respects. Volkswagen has failed so far. Some downturns are still observed - sales due to the incident with this scandal fell by 5.2 percent at the end of last winter. This is in Germany. Worldwide sales fell by two percent. However, no one doubts - this is a temporary phenomenon.
(CEO),
Kfaus Kennberg (executive director)
Automobili Lamborghini S.p.A (subsidiary of Audi AG) ,
Bentley Motors Ltd.
Bugatti Automobiles S.A.S. (subsidiary of Volkswagen France) Scania AB
SEAT S.A.
Skoda Auto a.s.
Volkswagen Marine
Porsche
Ducati Motor Holding S.p.A. (subsidiary of Audi AG)
ItalDesign Giugiaro
The Volkswagen Group consists of 342 companies involved in the production of vehicles and related services. As of September 2011, Porsche Automobil Holding SE (also known as Porsche SE) owns 50.73% of the voting shares of Volkswagen AG. In turn, Volkswagen AG owns 49.9% of the ordinary shares of the intermediate holding Porsche Zwischenholding GmbH (the remaining 50.1% is directly owned by Porsche SE), and Porsche Zwischenholding GmbH owns 100% of the shares of the luxury car manufacturer Porsche AG. Negotiations are underway to merge into a single structure VW-Porsche. Until September 2015, Martin Winterkorn was simultaneously Chairman of the Board of Porsche SE and Volkswagen AG.
According to the results of 9 months of 2009, it was the world's largest car manufacturer. Ranked 14th on the Fortune Global 500 in 2009. The leader of the European car market (more than 25%).
Story
The concern traces its origins to the company created by the "Gesellschaft zur Vorbereitung des Deutschen Volkswagens mbH" ("Society for the preparation of German people's car"At the National Socialist organization" Strength through Joy ") by Ferdinand Porsche in 1937 in Berlin. In early 1938, construction began on the first Volkswagen plant in Wolfsburg; On September 16 of the same year, the company was renamed "Volkswagenwerk GmbH". After World War II, the factories came under the control of the British military administration.
On August 22, 1960, the Volkswagen Plants limited liability company was founded, which, after the founding of the Federal Republic of Germany, became owned by the state of Lower Saxony. By decision of the annual general meeting in 1985, the name of the company was changed to "Volkswagen AG". In addition to the automotive and motorcycle industries, the concern provided financial and logistics services and had a small food business.
In the early 1990s, the concern experienced great difficulties. Appointed Chairman of the Group in 1993, Ferdinand Piech turned out to be an excellent crisis manager. He practically saved the concern by moving it to a four-day work week. Until 2015, Piech played one of the key roles in the concern. It was he who achieved outstanding success, choosing an offensive policy and acquiring a whole galaxy of popular automobile brands.
Corporate structure
Financial divisionIn March 1991, in order to optimize the organizational structure, Volkswagen forms an internal division called Volkswagen Finanz, which in January 1994 becomes independent within the group as a closed joint-stock company Volkswagen Financial Services. 100% of the share capital belongs to Volkswagen AG. As a banking and financial structure, Volkswagen Financial Services gains access to international financial markets and the opportunity to finance projects on favorable terms. The Group's financial division, Volkswagen Financial Services, is currently the largest financial operator in the automotive market Europe, headquartered in Braunschweig. Assets of Volkswagen Financial Services at the end of 2009 amounted to more than 60.2 billion euros. Volkswagen Financial Services employs more than 5,000 people worldwide, including 3,600 employees based in Germany itself. The division deals with:
ActivityIn 2010, the revenue of the Volkswagen AG concern amounted to €57.243 billion, net profit - €1.55 billion. In 2009, despite the global crisis and the general decline in car sales, the company managed to increase car sales worldwide by 0.6%. This is a sales record, which reached the level of 6.23 million vehicles. In 2006, the concern sold 5.72 million vehicles worth €104.9 billion (net profit for this period amounted to €2.75 billion). More than 370 thousand people worked at the Group's enterprises. In 2005, the concern produced 5.22 million and sold 5.19 million vehicles. 7.5% of sales came from Germany, 44.7% from Europe, 15% from North America, 6.6% from Asia Pacific, 4.4% from South America and 1.8% from Africa. Revenue in 2005 amounted to €95.3 billion, an increase of 7% compared to 2004, VW's net profit was €1.12 billion (€697 million in 2004). In April 2019, information appeared that Volkswagen, together with the Chinese company Anhui Jianghuai Automobile (JAC), plan to build in China new plant for the production of electric vehicles. According to preliminary data, the construction of a new production facility will require about $750 million. ProductionThe Volkswagen AG concern owns 48 automobile manufacturing enterprises in 15 countries of Europe and in six countries of America, Asia and Africa. More than 370 thousand people work at the enterprises of the group, more than 26,600 vehicles are produced daily, authorized sales and service of vehicles are carried out in more than 150 countries of the world. Volkswagen in RussiaVolkswagen Group Rus LLC is the official distributor of Volkswagen, Audi, ŠKODA, Bentley, Lamborghini, Ducati and Volkswagen Commercial Vehicles in Russia. The activity of the company as a single importing company dates back to 2003. The General Director is Markus Ozegowicz. In 2014, Volkswagen Group Rus became the official partner of the Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games in Sochi. To organize the transfer of guests, the company provided the Sochi 2014 Organizing Committee with more than 3,000 Volkswagen, Audi, Škoda and Volkswagen Commercial Vehicles, most of which were produced at the company's Russian plants. In March 2016, the company put into operation a new warehouse for spare parts and accessories in the city of Chekhov near Moscow. In February 2018, the company's plant won the Transformer of the Year award for the best performance among Volkswagen brand plants in the world. In July 2018, the company expanded the boundaries of its activities and received the status of an official importer of Volkswagen brands - passenger cars and Volkswagen-Commercial vehicles in Kazakhstan. In November 2018, the Volkswagen Group Rus plant in Kaluga produced the 500,000th Volkswagen Polo sedan in the Drive configuration with a 1.6-liter engine with 110 hp. with. and 6-speed automatic transmission gears. This vehicle was handed over to the Russian car sharing operator Delimobil. In 2018, the company's sales in the Russian market amounted to 211,800 vehicles. The market share in 2018 reached 11.8%. The volume of sales of all brands of the Volkswagen Group in Russia amounted to 229,800 (including the results of sales of brands Porsche, MAN and Scania). In 2018, the company's production sites produced 200,000 vehicles: 143,500 vehicles at the company's plant in Kaluga and 56,500 vehicles at the production site in Nizhny Novgorod. The volume of engine production amounted to 161,000 engines, 44,000 of which were exported to production sites in Spain and the Czech Republic. Factory in KalugaOn May 29, 2006, the company signed an investment agreement with the administration of the Kaluga Region and the Ministry of Economic Development of Russia on the construction car factory near the city of Kaluga, in the technopark Grabtsevo. The initial investment in the project amounted to 570 million Euros. Initially, the plant, opened on November 28, 2007, produced Škoda Octavia cars using SKD technology. In October 2009, the plant launched the production of full-cycle bodies, including welding and painting. At the end of October 2009, Volkswagen Group Rus announced the work on the project budget sedan B-class, created on the basis of the Volkswagen Polo hatchback specifically for the Russian market. At the beginning of June 2010, it became known about the practical readiness of the car, called Volkswagen Polo sedan. The car was put into production at the plant in Kaluga in the summer of 2010. At the moment, the plant produces Volkswagen Tiguan models, Volkswagen Polo and Škoda Rapid. In 2013, the level of production localization was estimated at 50%. In November 2016, a new body shop with an area of 12,000 sq. m. Additional capacities of the enterprise made it possible to organize the production of the second generation Volkswagen Tiguan. Volkswagen Group's total investment in production new Tiguan amounted to 180 million euros. In June 2017, production of the updated Škoda Rapid started at the plant in Kaluga. engine plantIn 2015, a plant for the production of 1.6 MPI engines of the EA211 series was opened in Kaluga. The plant's capacity is 150,000 engines per year. In February 2016, the millionth car rolled off the assembly line in Kaluga, which was a Volkswagen Polo Allstar with a locally produced engine. In October 2016, the 200,000th 1.6 MPI EA211 series engine was produced since the opening of the engine factory. In 2018, 161,000 engines were manufactured, of which 44,000 were exported. Production in Nizhny NovgorodSince 2012, the company has also started producing cars at the production site of the GAZ Group in Nizhny Novgorod. The contract assembly agreement with the Russian GAZ Group was signed on June 14, 2011. . In accordance with the agreement, GAZ has now organized a full cycle of car production Š koda Octavia and Škoda Kodiaq. In June 2017, Volkswagen Group and GAZ Group signed a cooperation agreement in three areas:
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In this article, we have systematized the information so that you can easily find out what isVAG (VAG) and what is included in its structure, as well as what brands of cars are included in the concern VAG. We made brief conclusions on the formation and functioning VAG on December 1, 2019.
AT automotive world It is customary to use various abbreviations that not every person can decipher the first time. Indeed, most of these abbreviations refer to automotive companies and concerns.
One of the most common and well-known abbreviations for several years remains VAG. The opinions of the townsfolk on the issue of its decoding were divided. Many believe that this is simply an abbreviated VOLKSWAGEN variant, the other part claims that VAG includes all german cars including Mercedes and BMW.
Let's try to figure out how things really are.
How is VAG (VAG) deciphered?
Previously, the abbreviation VAG stood for Volkswagen Audi Group but currently it is Volkswagen Aktiengesellschaft (Volkswagen AG). The second word in the name means "joint-stock company".
At the moment, there is one official German company name - Volkswagen Konzern, which translates as "Volkswagen Concern", and in English sources - this is the Volkswagen Group (Volkswagen group of companies). The group headquarters is located in Wolfsburg, Germany.
What car brands are included in the VAG concern?
Today, the VAG concern includes 12 separate car brands: Audi, Bentley, Bugatti, Lamborghini, Porsche, Seat, Skoda, Volkswagen, MAN, Scania, Volkswagen Commercial Vehicles and Ducati.
At the end of summer 2009 Porsche SE and Volkswagen Group reached an agreement whereby Volkswagen and Porsche AG decided to merge by 2011.
By this time, about 50% of VAG shares belonged to the PORSCHE holding. In turn, VAG owns a 100% stake in the intermediate holding Porsche Zwischenholding GmbH, which has the right to manufacture PORSCHE AG vehicles.
The Volkswagen Group includes the following car brands:
- Audi- last car brand Auto Union Group, acquired from Daimler-Benz in 1964.
- NSU Motorenwerke- was purchased in 1969 and entered the Audi Division. Not used as an independent brand since 1977.
- seat- A controlling stake in the company (53%) was acquired from the state in 1986. Since 1990 the brand is practically the property of the Volkswagen Group, which owns 99.99% of the company's shares.
- Skoda- bought in 1991
- Volkswagen Commercial Vehicles (Volkswagen Nutzfahrzeuge) - was part of Volkswagen AG, but in 1995, thanks to Bernd Weidemann, the previous chairman of the board of the group, it became an independent division within the Volkswagen Group. The division is engaged in the production of minibuses, buses and tractors.
- Bentley- (1998) was bought from the British concern Vickers together with Rolls-Royce, but cannot independently produce cars under this brand, since the brand itself was sold to BMW.
- Bugatti- (1998)
- Lamborghini - (1998)
- Porsche
The concern includes 342 companies engaged in the production of cars, motorcycles, special equipment, engines, etc.
The Volkswagen Group owns 48 automotive companies in 15 European countries and six countries in the Americas, Asia and Africa. The group employs more than 370,000 people, produces more than 26,600 vehicles daily, and has authorized vehicle sales and service in more than 150 countries.
Thus, the concernVAG was created with the goal of taking over smaller car brands by the big car giants. In our opinion, this was done for the following reasons:
- Create imaginary competition among automobile manufacturers;
- Dictate your price conditions in the European automotive market.
The Volkswagen Group is one of the world's largest automotive companies. It currently consists of 12 companies:
Volkswagen, Audi, Skoda, Seat, Lamborghini, Bugatti, Bentley, Man, Scania, Volkswagen commercial vehicles, Porsche and Ducati.
A few facts about each company that is part of the concern.
The beginning of the creation of the Volkswagen company was laid in October 1933 in Berlin, where Adolf Hitler announced the need to create a reliable and inexpensive car for the people of Germany.
The Fuhrer's demand was embodied in metal by the brilliant designer Ferdinand Porsche, who already in January 1934 presented the drawings of the first car for the people, which was called the "people's car" ("Volks-Wagen"). The basis of the people's car was the previously developed model Porsche Typ 60.
During World War II, work on the construction of Volkswagen was suspended, and the unfinished plant was converted to the production of military products.
VW opened its divisions in 1959 in Brazil - "Volkswagen do Brasil S.A.", and then in Mexico "Volkswagen de Mexico S.A. de C.V."
The Golf I, introduced in 1974, marked a new stage of competition in the production of the class. compact cars, which became almost officially called the "golf class".
Volkswagen has given the world iconic vehicles and is firmly in first place in many automotive niches.
Autostadt (Autostadt) - a real city within a city with a length of more than 5 km and an area of 25 hectares, which is the communication platform of the Volkswagen Group, its individual brands and customers. The complex is one of the most popular tourist attractions in Germany, which is visited annually by about 2 million people. The Volkswagen Autostadt is located on the bank of an artificial canal between the center of Wolfsburg and the Volkswagen factory.
Volkswagen has its own football team (VFL "Wolfsburg") with the excellent home stadium Volkswagen Arena.
2. Volkswagen Commercial Vehicles
This is part of the Volkswagen Group, which produces commercial vehicles such as minibuses, buses, pickups, trucks and tractors.
Initially, this division was one part of VW, but in 1995, Dr. Bernd Wiedemann, former chairman of the board of Volkswagen Commercial Vehicles, announced the separation of the division into an independent production unit of the group.
The Audi concern was formed as a result of the merger of four companies that produced cars and motorcycles under the brands DKW, Horch, Audi and Wanderer. On June 29, 1932, Audi, Horch and DKW merged to form Auto Union AG, symbolized by the famous four rings.
In 1964, the company became part of Volkswagen. In 1965, it was decided to release all new models of the concern that had lost its independence under the Audi brand. The first time after the takeover of Volkswagen did not want Audi to develop its own cars. They were going to produce the VW "Beetle" model at the enterprise's facilities. But Ludwig Kraus, who was then the head of the design department, decided to develop the model secretly from everyone. The result of his work was Audi model 100, which appeared in 1968.
In 1993, the Audi Group was formed, which eventually included the Hungarian and Brazilian divisions, the British Cosworth Technology, the Italian Automobili Lamborghini and the Spanish SEAT were absorbed.
4. Automobili Lamborghini S.p.A. (shortly: Lamborghini) is an Italian manufacturer of luxury sports cars. Located in the village of Sant'Agata Bolognese, near Bologna. The company was founded in 1963 by Ferruccio Lamborghini.
In 1978, due to the oil crisis, the company declared itself bankrupt. For the next 20 years, Automobili Lamborghini was owned by Chrysler and then by M'tec (Megatech). In 1998, Audi AG became the owner of the company.
The history of the SEAT brand dates back to 1919. Then the Italian company FIAT decides to open its branch in the town of Martorell, a suburb of Barcelona. On November 13, 1953, the first SEAT car rolled off the assembly line at the Martorell factory.
On September 30, 1982, a cooperation agreement was signed between SEAT and the Volkswagen Group, and on June 9, 1986, Volkswagen acquired a 51% stake in the Spanish company. By 1990 volkswagen Group became the full owner of SEAT.
The first cars under the Skoda brand were produced in 1919. On April 16, 1991, an agreement was signed on the sale of a 31% stake in the ownership of Škoda, a.a.s. VAG for 620 million marks.
In December 1995, VAG increased its share to 70% by paying 1.4 billion marks. In January 1998, the company changed its name to Škoda Auto, a.s. VAG received final control in May 2000, when the remaining 30% share was bought out for 12.3 billion kroons.
More detailed history Skoda brands can be read on our.
Ettore Bugatti founded his firm in 1909. sports cars Type 16 and Type 18 were made in 1914. At the European Grand Prix in 1924, the Bugatti Type 35 took all the first four places. Today, Bugatti is focused on the production of expensive sports cars.
The Bugatti brand was acquired by Volkswagen AG in 1998. The first car it presented was the fiberglass EB118 coupe, created by ItalDesign stylist Fabrizio Giugiaro.
In 2005, the Volkswagen Group begins mass production new unique model that received official name bugatti veyron 16.4.
8. Bentley is an English company specializing in the production of exclusive expensive cars that are far from accessible to everyone.
The history of the English automaker Bentley began on January 18, 1919, when Walter Owen Bentley, together with F. Barges and G. Varley, developed their first car with a 3-liter engine unprecedented for those times.
Bentley has been making luxury cars since 1930.
In 1952 Bentley introduced the Continental. It was a sports two-door car that gained fame as the fastest production sedan.
Bentley still produces various variants of the Continental, which are distinguished by excellent quality interior trim (Conolli leather, rare wood panels or polished aluminum) and thoughtful chassis design.
The most powerful Continental T with a short wheelbase and a 6.8-liter Vickers turbo engine develops 426 hp. and is rightfully considered one of the fastest coupes in the world.
Since 1998, Bentley has been part of the Volkswagen Group.
9. MAN SE is a German engineering company specialized in the production trucks, buses and engines. Founded in 1758, it was previously called Maschinenfabrik Augsburg-Nürnberg AG (Machine Factory Augsburg-Nürnberg, AO). The headquarters is located in Munich.
From January 1943 to April 1945 inclusive, MAN produced Pz Kpfw V "Panther" tanks by order of the Reich.
In 1951 the company developed the first German diesel engine for trucks with exhaust gas turbocharger.
In 1962, MAN took over Porsche Diesel Motorenbau (the diesel tractor division of Porsche KG in the 1950s and early 1960s).
In 1979, MAN began cooperating with Volkswagen on medium-sized trucks, which received the MAN-VW brand.
To date, the main shareholder of MAN is the Volkswagen Group (75.03%), the rest of the shares are in free float. In March 2013, VW made a preliminary offer to buy the remaining shares in MAN. The issue of buying the company will be considered by the board of directors of MAN SE at the annual meeting on June 6.
10.Scania AB is a Swedish manufacturer of trucks, buses and industrial and marine engines that has been producing buses since 1920. The headquarters is located in Södertälje, Sweden.
In 1969, Scania merged with the Swedish company Saab. But their cooperation did not last long, and since 1995 Scania has again become an independent company.
Major shareholders: Volkswagen AG (70.94%), MAN (17.37%).
Dr. Ing. h.c. F. Porsche AG (full name Doktor Ingenieur honoris causa Ferdinand Porsche Aktiengesellschaft - Joint Stock Company of the Honorary Doctor of Engineering Ferdinand Porsche) is a German engineering company founded by the famous designer Ferdinand Porsche in 1931. The headquarters and manufactory is located in Stuttgart, Germany.
In 1939, the company's first car, the Porsche 64, was developed, which became the progenitor of all future Porsches, and in 1963, the company's most famous model, the Porsche 911, was presented at the Frankfurt Motor Show.
In December 2009, 49.9% of the company's shares were acquired by Volkswagen AG. In August 2012, VW finally took over Porsche.
12. Ducati Motor Holding S.p.A. is an Italian motorcycle manufacturer.
Ducati was founded in 1926 in Bologna. The founders of the company were the brothers Andriano and Marcello Ducati. Both of them were interested in radio engineering, so the first direction of the company's work was precisely the production of radio engineering. In the 20s of the XX century, the demand for horns, loudspeakers did its job, and the company developed well.
After the Second World War, the demand for radio equipment fell sharply, and the company came under state control. At that time, it was important for Italy to create cheap vehicles, so Ducati's activities were retrained for the production of motorbikes and velomobiles.
Already in the early 1950s, Ducati conquered half of the Italian motorbike market. By this time, light motorcycles were becoming more and more popular.
Since July 2012, Ducati has been a division of Audi AG.
Volkswagen Group is also one of the largest shareholders Japanese company Suzuki Motor Corp.