2003 Volkswagen Jetta Wolfsburg Edition Sedan 4-door 1.8l Turbo on 2040-cars

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Volkswagen Golf voted 2013 European Car of the Year

The seventh-generation Volkswagen Golf just went on sale in Europe, but it is already off to a promising start. Announced as the Geneva Motor Show kicked off, the newest Golf was named European Car of the Year for 2013 in dominating style over cars like the Subaru BRZ/Toyota GT86 twins, Volvo V40, Ford B-Max and Mercedes-Benz A-Class.
According to Automotive News Europe, the MkVII Golf won handily over its rivals with a total of 414 votes. The Subaru BRZ and Toyota GT86 received 202 votes finishing in a distant second, while the Volvo V40 (189 votes), Ford B-Max (148 votes) and Mercedes-Benz A-Class (138 votes) round out the top five. The new Golf marks the third Volkswagen product to receive the prestigious award with previous cars including the MkIII Golf and the most recent iteration of the Polo.

German prosecutors raid VW, Audi offices

As Volkswagen continues to try to put its diesel emissions scandal behind it, the company has had mixed success. It has agreed to pay penalties and fix or buy back affected vehicles in the US, and has made a strong push to evolve into a greener, mobility-focused company. The scandal just won't die, though, and has, in fact, just escalated. Prosecutors have searched Volkswagen's Wolfsburg, Germany, headquarters, as well as Audi offices in Ingolstadt and Neckarsulm and even the homes of some Audi executives, Reuters reports. The raids, which coincided with Audi's annual earnings press conference, are related to 80,000 diesel vehicles with possible emissions cheat devices sold in the US between 2009 and 2015. European vehicles aren't part of this particular investigation. "With these search orders, we aim to clarify in particular who was involved in deploying the technology concerned and in the provision of false information to third parties," the Munich prosecutor's office says. Audi CEO Rupert Stadler, who says his residence had not been one of those searched, says he is supporting the ongoing investigation, admitting that the company has a long way to go to recover from the scandal. The Dieselgate scandal, as it has come to be known, broke in September 2015. Related Video:

Someone is leaving anti-diesel flyers on Volkswagen TDIs in Portland

As if some Volkswagen TDI owners don't already feel bad enough, given the recent diesel scandal, someone is further shaming them. Flyers full of bad information are being left on TDI cars in eco-friendly Portland, OR. Portland-based sandwich joint Lardo posted a picture of the flyer to their Instagram account yesterday morning. Along with annoying font color changes, the flyer incorrectly states that the diesel car spews two to four times more pollutants than a Chevy Suburban. The author of the flyer also throws a Nazi mention in there for good measure, though they get the history wrong, too. Volkswagen wasn't founded by Nazis, though the Nazi government did create a nationalized car industry to build the 'People's Car', originally designed by Ferdinand Porsche. The factory ended up making war machines instead. Volkswagens weren't really produced until after the fall of the Nazis at the end of World War II. This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings. Volkswagen outfitted their "clean" diesel cars with a device that would only limit emissions during testing. Once on the road, the car spewed 40 times more pollutants than it claimed. The automaker plans to 'refit' 11 million faulty vehicles. Today, the automaker launched a website dedicated to consumers unlucky enough to own the bum vehicles. Eco-warriors aren't the only ones leaving judgmental, passive-aggressive notes on cars. Like this incident in Portland, these notes often fall flat, like when this paralyzed man in Michigan parked in a handicap spot and was accused of stealing the spot simply because he drove his BMW to the gym.