(July 4, 2011) HERNDON, Va. — Led by the popularity of the restyled 2011 Jetta, Volkswagen of America reported  28,444 units sold in June 2011, a 35.1 percent increase over prior year sales.  Year-to-date sales are up 22.3 percent.

The new Jetta has been criticized by some reviewers as too plain and lacking the content of the previous-generation vehicle. But apparently the auto-buying public is disagreeing in rather large numbers.

Jetta sales in June totaled 17,105 – a 88.3 percent increase over last year. For the year, 91,752 Jettas have been sold in North America, a whopping 66 percent increase over the first six months of 2010.

"We've been able achieve a volume in the first half of this year in what took us effectively seven months last year," said Jonathan Browning, President and CEO, Volkswagen of America, Inc.  "With Volkswagen's broad range of fuel-efficient, high-quality vehicles, we expect the momentum to continue into the second-half of the year."

The VW sport utilities have also enjoyed success in 2011. The Touareg and Tiguan experienced 46.9 percent and 47.1 percent sales increases, respectively.  Eos convertible sales increased 17.7 percent over prior year, representing its best month since May 2009.  Volkswagen's high-mileage, clean diesel TDI models accounted for 21.3 percent of all June sales.

"The first-half of the year marked a period of unprecedented growth as more customers discovered the value, fuel economy, design and driving experience of the Volkswagen brand," said Browning. "As we head into the second half of the year, we expect this trend to continue, particularly in the fall when we add the all-new Passat and Beetle to our dealer showrooms."