Volkswagen regained its position as western Europe's biggest car brand last year, as the German carmaker passed Renault for the first time since 2001 in the region and recorded record global sales.
The return of VW's core brand to the lead position it held for most of the previous decade comes as the company's European business is making profits - but the group is being dragged down by losses it puts at close to €1 billion last year in the US.
The VW division, which includes the Skoda, Bentley and Bugatti badges as well as VW, will return to profit after special items this year, Bernd Pischetsrieder, chief executive, said last week at the Detroit Motor Show.
Figures published on Monday by the European Association of Automobile Manufacturers showed VW-badged cars increased sales 3.9 per cent to 1.5 million in western Europe last year, as the market fell slightly to 14.5 million. The western European region is counted as the 15 EU member states prior to enlargement, plus Iceland, Norway and Switzerland.
Renault, meanwhile, saw its sales fall 5.6 per cent to 1.4 million, as its core Mégane range of family cars aged. Adam Jonas, motor analyst at Morgan Stanley in London, said VW had among the lowest average model age of any carmaker, while Renault's cars were now older than the European average. Older models - which tend to sell less well - were also hurting France's PSA Peugeot Citroën, which last week warned that 2005 profits would be lower than expected.
"It is a French issue because [Renault and Peugeot] are both volume players and they are on the receiving end of Japanese and Korean competition," he said. Peugeot and Citroën together saw sales fall 2.5 per cent last year, although the loss was focused on Peugeot.
Overall the VW group - which includes Audi, Seat, Skoda, and Bentley - increased European sales 4.6 per cent to take the lead position in the region, with market share of 18.9 per cent.
Renault's losses were only slightly offset by Dacia, its fast growing Romanian subsidiary, which sold 13,678 cars in France, Germany and Spain.
Its main Logan model was designed to sell in emerging markets but has proved surprisingly popular in the developed markets of western Europe too.
Carlos Ghosn, chief executive of Renault and of Nissan, its Japanese affiliate, is due to take the wraps off a three-year plan for the French company in three weeks' time.
The contents of the plan have been closely guarded but investors expect clear profit and debt targets, more cost-cutting and a focus on upmarket vehicles.