2014 Volkswagen Jetta Se on 2040-cars

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Ducati is not for sale according to VW supervisory board

Volkswagen's planned sale of motorcycle brand Ducati and transmission maker Renk currently has no majority backing on the carmaker's supervisory board, with opponents to asset sales feeling invigorated by the group's strong results. Europe's largest automaker has tasked banks to evaluate options for Ducati and Renk including divesting the two divisions as it aims to streamline operations to help fund a post-dieselgate strategic overhaul. Volkswagen has been reviewing its portfolio of assets and brands since announcing in June 2016 a multi-billion-euro shift to electric cars and new mobility services as part of its so-called Strategy 2025. Five bidders have been shortlisted to buy Ducati, including Italy's Benetton family, with offers received valuing the brand at 1.3 billion-1.5 billion euros ($1.76 billion), a source said on Saturday. But VW's labour leaders, occupying half the seats on the 20-member supervisory board which decides on asset sales, resist a sale of Ducati and Renk without compelling financial reasons. "The employee representatives on Volkswagen's supervisory board will neither approve a sale of Ducati, nor one of Renk or MAN Diesel & Turbo," a spokesman for VW group's works council told Reuters late on Saturday. "Everyone who can read the VW half-year results should know: We don't need money and our subsidiaries are not up for grabs by bargain hunters." Six-month operating profit at VW group jumped 19 percent to 8.9 billion euros, the carmaker said on Thursday, as cost cuts and R&D improvements at the core namesake brand earned VW a respite from the billions of euros in costs for fines, vehicle refits and compensation related to its dieselgate scandal. One source at VW said that given strong union opposition, VW is now reviewing the plan to sell Ducati as it doesn't want to risk working with labour on implementing a hard-fought turnaround plan for the VW brand, seen as crucial by investors. Though Ducati is owned by VW's luxury brand Audi, the VW group's supervisory board has to approve a possible sale. Audi declined comment. The billionaire Porsche and Piech families, controlling 52 percent of voting shares in VW and holding four supervisory board seats, do not support selling Ducati or Renk, two other sources at VW group said. A spokesman for Porsche SE, the family's holding company, declined comment.

VW recalls another 6,700 vehicles over fuel leak [UPDATE]

UPDATE: An earlier version of this post suggested that the expanded recall involved an additional 44,658 units, when VW tells us that is in fact the total number - adding a further 6,679 to the original recall of 37,979. The text below has been updated accordingly, with our apologies for the confusion. It was a little over a month ago that Volkswagen issued a recall for some 38,000 vehicles over a potential fuel leak. Now the German automaker and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration have expanded that recall, affecting even more vehicles for the same issue. The problem revolves around a sealing cap at the fuel rail, which could fail and cause fuel to leak into the engine compartment, thereby increasing the risk of a fire. This time around, VW is calling in a selection of Jettas, Passats, Golfs, GTIs, Beetles and Beetle Convertibles, all of them from the 2014 and 2015 model years (except the Golf and GTI, of which only 2015 models are being recalled). The recall now affects an estimated additional 6,679 units, which (in addition to the 37,979 recalled previously) brings the total up to 44,658 vehicles across the United States. RECALL Subject : Fuel Leaking Into Engine Compartment Report Receipt Date: JAN 23, 2015 NHTSA Campaign Number: 15V028000 Component(s): FUEL SYSTEM, GASOLINE Potential Number of Units Affected: 44,658 Manufacturer: Volkswagen Group of America, Inc. SUMMARY: Volkswagen Group of America, Inc. (Volkswagen) is recalling certain model year 2014-2015 Jetta vehicles manufactured March 28, 2014, to November 24, 2014, 2014-2015 Passat vehicles manufactured April 7, 2014, to November 18, 2014, 2015 Golf and GTI vehicles manufactured July 1, 2014, to November 20, 2014, and 2014-2015 Beetle and Beetle Convertible vehicles manufactured March 31, 2014, to November 27, 2014. A sealing cap at the fuel rail may fail, allowing fuel to leak into the engine compartment. CONSEQUENCE: A fuel leak, in the presence of an ignition source, can result in a vehicle fire. REMEDY: Volkswagen will notify owners, and dealers will replace the fuel rails with new parts, free of charge. The recall is expected to begin in early February 2015. Owners may contact Volkswagen customer service at 1-800-822-8987. Volkswagen's number for this recall is 24BL. Note: This recall expands and supersedes recall 14V-809 (Volkswagen recall number 24Bi) and only affects vehicles not previously repaired under that campaign.

Taxpayers wasted $51 million on VW diesel credits

The scope of Volkswagen's diesel emission rules evasion continues to widen with 11 million vehicles now potentially affected around the world, and the company is setting aside over $7 billion to start paying for it all. However, the costs could go even deeper. In a piece that's well worth a read, an analysis by The LA Times finds that the government distributed as much as $51 million in green car subsidies to buyers of these models in 2009 – the first year of the dishonest engine management software. The short-term effects of this scandal on VW are already quite dire. On September 21, the company's stock fell over 20 percent at one point on the German exchange, ended down 17.8 percent that day, and have continued to tank. In addition, the Environmental Protection Agency has forced a stop-sale on 2015 and 2016 diesel models with the 2.0 TDI, and the agency has begun analyzing the 3.0-liter V6 TDI in the Audi A6, A7, A8, Q5, Q7, and Porsche Cayenne to look for similar issues. The Justice Department has also started a criminal investigation, and the automaker has instituted its own external probe, as well. The emissions irregularities were first discovered by researchers at West Virginia University and the International Council on Clean Transportation. The EPA and California Air Resources Board were eventually made aware and launched their own investigations.