Car trade

VV-Auto imports and markets Volkswagen, Audi, SEAT and Porsche passenger cars, and Volkswagen commercial vehicles in Finland. It also imports and markets SEAT vehicles in Estonia and Latvia. VV-Auto also imports MAN lorries and MAN and Neoplan buses into Finland. In addition to importing, VV-Auto is also a major vehicle retailer, offering after-sales service at its own outlets in Greater Helsinki and Turku.

VV-Auto's passenger car, commercial vehicle and lorry customers are served by a comprehensive dealer and servicing network throughout Finland. In addition to its traditional business, VV-Auto develops various service concepts and multi-channel services for the car trade. Examples of this include online stores, mobile apps and online systems for booking servicing, as well as Caara.fi – an entirely new online store for used cars, which operates solely online.

In 2016, the Volkswagen, Audi and SEAT ranges were updated and diversified. New models introduced to the market included the Volkswagen Tiguan, the Audi A4 allroad, A5 Coupé and Sportback, Q2, Q5, Q7 e-tron, SQ7 and TT RS Coupé and Roadster, and the SEAT Ateca. An updated version of the Volkswagen Amarok, a commercial vehicle with a new V6 engine, was introduced to the market. Volkswagen commercial vehicles also introduced a completely redesigned Volkswagen Crafter, which will hit the Finnish market in 2017. Volkswagen had another record-breaking year – in 2016, it was Finland's most popular car brand in terms of sales for the sixth consecutive year. For the 13^th consecutive year, more Audis were registered in Finland than any other premium German car brand.

Volkswagen's recall and repairs of type EA 189 diesel cars progressed in 2016 at the planned rate. By the end of the year, a software update was available for approximately 50,000 cars and 25% of these were repaired in 2016. The required updates to the controller device were available for all 2.0, 1.6 and 1.2 litre diesel engines. Due to the large number of different engine controller devices, updates were not made on all models at the same time. All of the corrective measures were approved by the German authority (KBA) before they were implemented. After the corrective measures, the cars meet all of the requirements of the EU5 emissions standard. The corrective measures do not affect the car's fuel consumption, engine power, CO2 emissions, driving behaviour or acoustics.

At the end of 2016, VV-Auto acquired the entire share capital of Oy Autocarrera Ab, a company engaged in importing and retailing Porsche. The price of the acquisition, structured as a share purchase, was approximately €27 million. The transaction will lead to an expansion of VV-Auto's collaboration with Volkswagen AG. Adding Porsche to the selection will increase sales and improve the profitability of the car trade. The Porsche acquisition brings one of the world's most highly regarded car brands to K Group, and the selection expands to encompass new models and new customer groups. Porsche is also making major investments in its hybrid and electric car range.

Competitive advantages of the car trade

• International brands and strong market position
• Diverse multichannel services, professional personnel
• Strong sales and after-sales service network, efficient logistics

Car trade websites

 Market in 2016

Market shares in 2016

Car trade, Finland

• VV-Auto’s market share 18.8% (Volkswagen, Audi and SEAT passenger cars, total of Volkswagen commercial vehicles, excluding campers and motorhomes).
• Volkswagen passenger cars 11.2%
• Audi 5.2%
• SEAT 2.0%
• Porsche 0.1%
• Volkswagen commercial vehicles 22.8%
• MAN trucks 4.2%

Net sales in 2016

Comparable operating profit in 2016