An upside-down Volkswagen beetle car, part of a fountain sculpture in front of a branch of a Swiss Volkswagen importer, is pictured in the town of Buchs near Zurich, Switzerland September 26, 2015. Swiss authorities say they are suspending sales of Volkswagen diesel vehicles that could contain devices capable of cheating emissions tests, including Audi, Seat, Skoda and Volkswagen vehicles built between 2009 and 2014.REUTERS/Arnd WiegmannAn upside-down Volkswagen beetle car, part of a fountain sculpture in front of a branch of a Swiss Volkswagen importer.
Europeans are back in a buying frenzy and are snapping up more cars across the region — but they are abandoning Volkswagen.
Data from the European Automobile Manufacturers’ Association (ACEA) revealed that registrations of new passenger cars rose by 8.2% between January and March to reach 3.8 million.
Sales rose across every major market in Europe. Britain clocked a 5.1% rise, Italy a 20.8% jump, and Germany a 4.5% increase.
However, when looking at what types of cars are being bought — VW was the only brand in the top ten to experience a fall in sales.
It is perhaps unsurprising considering it is still tackling the fallout from the emissions scandal.Volkswagen's reputation is in tatters after it was revealed the company cheated on diesel emissions tests in the US for seven years.
It did so through a clever piece of software that could identify when it was being tested and reduced harmful exhaust so it looked as if the cars met requirements, when in fact they didn't.
Cars with the VW brand saw sales slip by 0.5%  to 420,000. However, the VW group was saved overall in sales by its range of other brands without an explicit VW logo on the vehicles.
Overall sales rose 3.7% in the quarter, boosted by Audi and Skoda.
Now, the decline in Volkswagen branded vehicles may not seem like a big deal but when you look at this table and how it is failing to cash in on the improvement in Europe's consumer sentiment — you'll see why it is.
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