Sales of imported passenger vehicles in South Korea rose by 9.5% to 19,206 units in August from 17,547 units a year earlier, according to data released by the Korea Automobile Importers and Distributors Association (KAIDA).
The continued growth comes despite the ongoing high profile recall of around 106,000 BMWs after dozens of diesel models caught fire on the country's highways since the beginning of the year.
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Cumulative eight month (YTD) sales were up by 17.3% to 179,833 units from 153,327 units in the same period a year earlier, reflecting mainly strong rebounds by Audi and Volkswagen after they were forced out of the market following their emissions cover up scandal which came to light in 2016.
Audi sales rose by 829% to 8,536 units YTD from 919 units a year earlier on strong demand for the A6 and A3 turbodiesel models while Volkswagen's sales jumped to 8,715 units from zero – driven by strong demand for the diesel Tiguan SUV.
Leading importer Mercedes-Benz saw its YTD sales rise by just 0.7% to 48,803 units while BMW's sales were almost 13% higher at 40,910 units despite a 40% drop in August.
See also our monthly analysis: South Korean sales rise 4.5% in August
