Volkswagen is to start selling cars in Iran after more than 17 years away from the market.

Mammut Khodro will import VW brand vehicles into Iran and initially distribute them through eight dealers, focusing on the Teheran region.

The deal with local partner Mammut Khodro – also the official Iranian importer for the VW Group’s Scania brand – will see Volkswagen brand vehicles imported into Iran and initially distributed through eight dealers, focusing on the Teheran region. The deal will kick off with the Tiguan and Passat models.

Mehrzad Ferdows, board member and owner of Mammut Group, said: “The Iranian automotive market is currently undergoing changes based on customer expectations. Comfort, environmental friendliness, safety, fuel consumption and modern mobility services are becoming increasingly important for Iranians. This has led to rethinking in the automotive industry and consequently a shift towards more modern vehicles and mobility solutions.”

Volkswagen said the deal forms part of a systematic regionalisation of its worldwide automotive business.

“By returning to Iran, the Volkswagen brand is filling in another blank spot on the global automotive map. We are thus strengthening our international presence still further. At the same time, we are taking our very latest models with premium features to our Iranian customers,” said Anders Sundt Jensen, project manager for the Iranian market at Volkswagen.

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