Volkswagen sues German dealers for importing 22 ID.6 EVs from China.

 

German car dealer Gregory Brudny is facing legal battles over his decision to import 22 Volkswagen ID.6s from China. The ID.6s are exclusively available in China as part of the rapidly expanding ID sub-range from the German brand. VW-FAW has been accused of selling the vehicles at substantial discounts due to intense competition in China. The ID.6 is an extended-wheelbase version of the ID.4, with three rows of seats accommodating up to seven people.

The dealer hoped to prepare the vehicles for sale in Germany, and after a few modifications and a software update, the country's transport authority was ready to sign off on the vehicles. However, VW's legal team intervened when Brudny attempted to advertise the vehicles for sale. A court ruled that the vehicles should be seized, and now VW wants them to be destroyed.

Volkswagen has not commented on this case specifically, but it has told German outlets that Volkswagen models produced in China are different from those for sale in Europe and lack certain legal requirements, such as an automatic emergency call system. The dealer counters that since he imported the vehicles legally and received approval from German authorities, there should be no problem. Vehicles produced in China are currently cheap due to low production costs and a recent price war in the Chinese market.

Brudny believes that VW is trying to make an example of him in order to deter others from trying to import Chinese-made vehicles. Futurezone reports that the dealer is currently paying €8,000 per month in storage costs and that it will cost him €15,000 per vehicle to destroy them if a court orders him to do so.

The fate of the dealer's ID.6s remains unclear, and Brudny has appealed the ruling. In 2021, a German court found in favor of Hyundai in a similar case, where its vehicles were being imported for resale from Eastern European countries.