Volkswagen Busted For Cheating On Diesel Models -- And Owners Won't Like The Probable 'Fix'

[Hamartia Antidote]

http://www.extremetech.com/extreme/234817-vw-diesels-owners-say-well-take-the-buyback-not-the-repair

VW diesels owners say, ‘We’ll take the buyback, not the repair’

The majority of the half-million owners of VW diesels with emissions problems want Volkswagen to buy the cars back, then they’ll move on to a different car. That’s a big fraction, possibly because the owners don’t really know yet what the fuel economy and performance of their TDI VWs will be like post-fix.

About 475,000 Volkswagen owners have already signed up to be part of the class action settlement – a large number in a relatively short time since details were hammered out in June – and only a relatively handful have opted out of the lawsuit, those people perhaps thinking they can cut a better deal one-on-one.

$10 billion fund for four-cylinder diesel VWs
Volkswagen has set aside $10 billion to fund buybacks and/or repairs and cash back for the owners of lessees of the 485,000 four-cylinder diesels with non-compliant emissions. The total fund is $15 billion, which covers buybacks or repairs for the 75,000 of Audi, Porsche and VW six-cylinder diesels with emissions problems; compensation to VW dealers for lost revenue; and environmental good works.

An initial agreement over the four-cylinder buyback/repair program was reached in late June in the US District Court in San Francisco. Details of the six-cylinder program have not been finalized and approved.

A good deal for VW owners
If you discount the ribbing VW owners may be getting from their friends, the repair/buyback program works out well for the owners and leaseholders. First, they have two more years, until Sept. 1, 2018, to decide which way to go: Take a buyback or get the car repaired and at least $5,100 in cash compensation for their trouble.

If VW buys the car back, it’s essentially for the blue book value of the car before the emissions scandal broke a year ago. There are also some cash incentives they’ve received in the past year, such as credits that can be used for maintenance or in the parts department (carpet mats and a new shift knob, say). Basically, they’re getting more than the car is worth. If VW repairs the car, owners get $5,100 — that should more than compensate for the lower resale value.

If the owner wants to think about it for a while longer – two more years from today – they’ll be getting two more years of use out of a car that is fun to drive, gets great highway mileage, and almost certainly passes emissions tests, since one certainty about VW diesels is that the emissions gear works when it’s at the inspection station. Compared with other big class action settlements, analysts and lawyers say that the fraction of people who’ve signed up to be part of the lawsuit is high in such a short period (two months). Meanwhile, only a little more than 200 owners have opted not to be part of the lawsuit, about one of every 2,500 people affected.

VW may prefer the buyback option

Despite the higher cost of buying back the cars, then repairing some and scrapping others (older cars with emissions more out of compliance), VW may prefer the buyback scheme. Part of VW’s agreement in the initial settlement is that VW eventually buys back or repairs 85% of the affected cars. Penalties kick in if VW doesn’t reach that level.

Cars affected by the four-cylinder diesel recall are:

• Volkswagen Beetle, Beetle Convertible 2013-2015
• Volkswagen Golf 2-Door 2010-2013, Golf 4-Door 2010-2015, Golf SportWagen 2015
• Volkswagen Jetta 2009-2015, Jetta SportWagen 2009-2014
• Volkswagen Passat 2012-2015
• Audi A3 2010-2013, 2015

If VW isn’t on target to reach the 85% level, it’s possible there’ll be more mailings and possibly further promotions to get owners to bring their cars in for emissions work or for buyback. People who have leased have the option of ending the lease at any time with no penalties.

 

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http://m.thenational.ae/business/re...under-suspicion-and-audi-in-scandal-spotlight

Double whammy for VW with chairman now under suspicion and Audi in scandal spotlight



Volkswagen’s efforts to emerge from the diesel-emissions scandal have been dealt a double blow after German prosecutors extended their inquiry to the chairman Hans Dieter Poetsch amid reports Audi installed additional cheating software in some of its cars.

Europe’s largest car maker has struggled to extricate itself from the crisis, which erupted in September 2015 after Volkswagen admitted to rigging about 11 million cars worldwide to cheat on emissions tests. Mr Poetsch, who was chief financial officer when US authorities were investigating, was installed as the chairman in the aftermath of the revelations to help stabilise the company. Audi, which developed some of the engines involved in the scandal, is the group’s biggest profit contributor and is critical to Volkswagen’s recovery plan.

In an investigation into allegations of market manipulation, German prosecutors named Mr Poetsch as a third suspect after interviewing more witnesses and examining "other sources", said Klaus Ziehe, spokesman for the Braunschweig prosecutors’ office. "Initial evidence" suggests that Mr Poetsch may have been involved, he said.

In the United States, environmental authorities in California discovered that certain Audi petrol and diesel models include software that direct the engines to burn less fuel and emit less carbon-dioxide on test stands than on the roads, Germany’s Bild newspaper reported. The findings made over the summer apply to automatic-transmission cars including the Audi A6 and A8 saloons and the Q5 4x4, the newspaper said. Audi had stopped installing the defeat devices in new vehicles by that time, Bild said.


When the steering wheel of those vehicles was turned more than 15 degrees, as if backing out of a parking space, the emissions-limiting software disengaged, Bild reported. An Audi spokesman declined to comment on the Bild report, citing ongoing negotiations with authorities.

Volkswagen reasserted its position that management "fulfilled its disclosure obligation under German capital markets law", it said. Meanwhile, Wolfgang Porsche, the head of the industrial clan that controls the majority of Volkswagen’s voting shares, said the families "absolutely stand behind Mr Poetsch".

Mr Poetsch was the chief financial officer of Volkswagen from 2003 to 2015 and also sits on boards at the Porsche and Audi units. The market-manipulation investigation by Braunschweig prosecutors is also targeting the former chief executive Martin Winterkorn and the VW brand chief Herbert Diess over how they disclosed the scandal to investors.

While Volkswagen has settled civil penalties in the US related to rigged 2-litre diesel cars and is recalling those vehicles in Europe, issues related to larger 3-litre motors remain unresolved. The discussions relate to about 80,000 cars with diesel engines developed by Audi. By secretly adjusting how cars performed under test conditions versus on the road, Volkswagen was able to market diesel engines’ efficiency while not sacrificing driving performance.

 

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http://www.dw.com/en/eu-launches-le...ix-other-countries-over-vw-scandal/a-36690366

EU launches legal case against Germany, six other countries over VW scandal

The European Union suspects seven EU members of having failed to crack down on emissions cheating by the German carmaker. Germany claims that current EU law in the area is unclear.

The European Commission on Thursday began the so-called "infringement procedures," calling Germany, Britain, Spain and Luxembourg to account for not imposing the same kind of penalties Volkswagen faced in the United States for using illegal software to mask health-harming emissions.

The Czech Republic, Lithuania and Greece have been singled out for having national legislations that did not even allow for fining the car industry over potentional violations.

Germany and Britain also stand accused of refusing to disclose information on possible emissions irregularities in VW vehicles gleaned in national investigations this year.

The Commission, which is the European Union's executive, said in a statement that it was acting on the grounds that the the seven member states "have failed to fulfil their obligations" under EU law.

"National authorities across the EU must ensure that car manufacturers actually comply with the law," said European Industry Commissioner Elzbieta Bienkowska in a statement.

Worldwide repercussions

German carmaker Volkswagen, Europe's largest, admitted in September 2015 to installing software in its diesel vehicles that falsified test results for nitrogen oxide. The revelation led to mass recalls, the resignation of its chief executive and the imposition of billions of dollars in compensation settlements in the US.

The legal action launched on Thursday is the first step in infringement procedures and gives member states two months to respond. If an adequate response is not forthcoming, the EU could take them to the EU court in Luxembourg.

Germany, which is by far the EU's biggest carmaking state, has complained that EU laws on the matter are poorly framed.

VW itself claims that the so-called "defeat devices" installed in its diesel vehicles were not illegal under EU law.