Production and sales by Shanghai Volkswagen both surpassed the 1-million-unit threshold in the first 11 month this year, a new record. Sales at the joint venture increased by 13.7% over the same period last year, a faster pace than the country’s overall auto market, which has cooled after two years of rapid growth. The company has already outstripped its full-year sales in 2010. Shanghai Volkswagen sold more than 110,000 vehicles last month, an all-time record high in its November sales figures. The Passat family has reported monthly sales of over 20,000 units, led by the New Passat launched earlier this year. Monthly sales of the Tiguan SUV hit 13,000 units, while the compact Lavida Langyi, maintained stable monthly sales of over 20,000 units this year. The Polo family registered monthly sales surpassing 12,000. All the cars now rank among the top in their segments and have the chance to become No 1, Thomas Zahn, Deputy Managing Director of SAIC-Volkswagen Sales Co and Executive Director of the Volkswagen brand of Shanghai Volkswagen, said. The Skoda brand also reported robust sales of more than 110,000 Octavia compact cars delivered between January and November. Its mid-sized sedan Superb and subcompact Fabia are also gaining popularity, each with sales of 40,000 units so far this year. At the Guangzhou auto show last month, the company debuted a new crossover variant of the Fabia, the Fabia Scout, offering a sporty and dynamic version of the brand. The joint venture has factories in Shanghai and Nanjing, and is building a new plant in Yizheng, Jiangsu province, to expand capacity, the China Daily reports. Shanghai Volkswagen Automotive meanwhile has received approval from the National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC) to start work on a CNY2 billion passenger car plant in Xinjiang, with an initial annual capacity of 50,000 sub-compact passenger cars per year.