ATLAS SALES - 2018
* January: 4,303* February: 4,766* March: 6,063* April: 5,404* May: 3,923Source: Volkswagen of America
Volkswagen of America posted a 4 percent gain in May sales compared to a year ago, even though the Chattanooga-made Atlas SUV had its worst month of the year amid a supply-chain issue.
Atlas sales of 3,923 in May were off from 5,404 units in April, according to the German automaker.
VW's Chattanooga plant had been dealing with a problem sourcing a front grille due to a fire at a supplier and temporarily parked Atlas vehicles until the part arrived from another company.
"Supply chain issues did end up being a factor for sales of the Atlas last month," said company spokesman Brendan Bradley.
SUVs have accounted for nearly 50 percent of Volkswagen brand sales year-to-date, up 13.5 percent compared to a year ago.
Sales of the all-new 2018 Tiguan compact SUV in May totaled 8,579 units, its best month to date, according to the company.
Volkswagen earlier this year announced it plans to spend $340 million for a second SUV in Chattanooga, a five-seater based off the seven-seat Atlas.
Ivan Drury, a senior analyst at Edmunds.com, termed plans to build the five-seater "a very smart move." He said the SUV would compete against vehicles such as the Jeep Grand Cherokee, which he called "a trade-in monster."
"If Volkswagen can tap into the market a little bit, it's guaranteed success," said Drury about the smaller SUV on which production is to start in the last half of 2019.
Also in May, sales of the Passat midsize sedan, which is made in Chattanooga, totaled 4,757 units, down 12.8 percent from a year ago as that segment struggles amid higher SUV and pickup truck sales.
Jetta sales totaled 6,821 units in May, with the newly introduced redesigned version accounting for 2,147 vehicles.
"The all-new 2019 Jetta, which launched in the middle of May, has been well received," Derrick Hatami, Volkswagen of America's executive vice president of sales, marketing and after sales, said in a statement. "We had our best month to date for the 2018 Tiguan as we continue to see encouraging numbers for our growing lineup of family-friendly SUVs."
Total May sales for Volkswagen of America was 31,211 vehicles. Year to date, with 143,957 units delivered, VW posted a 7.5 percent increase in sales.
Analysts said strong job and housing markets helped the auto industry to have a better-than-anticipated May.
FCA reported sales of 214,294 vehicles in May, an 11 percent gain, with the Jeep brand up 29 percent in the month.
Honda reported sales of 153,069, up 3.1 percent in May over the prior year.
Ford Motor Co.'s U.S. sales for May totaled 242,824 vehicles, up nearly 1 percent. Sales of Ford's F-Series line of trucks rose 11 percent in the month.
Still, Nissan Group reported total U.S. sales for May of 131,832 units, a drop of 4 percent compared to the previous year. The fall occurred even though sales of Nissan crossovers, trucks and SUVs set a May record. Sales of the Rogue crossover set a May record with sales of 38,413 units, up 18 percent. Nissan LEAF all-electric vehicle sales increased 13 percent to 1,576 units.
Toyota Motor also recorded a 1.3 percent fall in May to 215,321 vehicles.
Contact Mike Pare at mpare@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6318. Follow him on Twitter @MikePareTFP.