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Wagons make a bit of a comeback, with new models, sales on the rise

Consider this an official invitation to hop on the wagon bandwagon. There's still tons of room because, well, it's a wagon (and market share is still extremely small). But according to new data, the segment is growing. According to a report from Bloomberg, using data from Edmunds.com, roughly 211,600 Americans purchased wagons in 2018. That is technically down from the 237,600 sold in 2017, but wagon sales in the U.S. are up 29 percent from where they were five years ago. It's also the third year in a row that wagon sales broke the 200,000 mark. The sales trends have been somewhat representative of the availability of wagons. New models have debuted during the past 5 years and therefore offer more opportunity at more brands to buy wagons. In addition to more modest cars such as the Volkswagen Golf Sportwagen, several luxury and performance brands are offering wagons today, such as Mercedes-Benz, Audi, Porsche, Jaguar, Volvo and Buick. (Bloomberg's headlines make the point that "crossovers are for the Kardashians," and wagons are just, well, classier.) This uptick in brand-name availability, as well as extremely well-executed design on most of the wagons currently available, has helped increase the segment's desirability. That, and its ability to better accomplish the same tasks at hand while standing out from the crossover and SUV crowd. Still, the posted numbers represent a small fraction of the total vehicles sold. According to the data, wagons only held a 1.4 percent market share in 2017, the segment's best recent year. Wagons hold a steadfast place in America's past, and they're writing an interesting new story. With the downturn in traditional cars, they may continue to create an unexpected narrative. Related Video: News Source: Bloomberg, Edmunds Audi BMW Buick Volkswagen Volvo Wagon station wagon

German authorities claim 2.8 million VW diesels evaded testing

While Volkswagen admits that there are 11 million diesel vehicles around the world that may be able to evade emissions testing, investigations by government authorities are starting to provide a glimpse of where some of those actually are. According to German Transport Minister Alexander Dobrindt, there are 2.8 million VWs in the country with the tech to cheat environmental rules, Reuters reports. In the US, at least 482,000 cars are believed to be affected. German regulators claim not knowing about the automaker's emissions testing evasions until quite recently, and Dobrindt didn't begin a fact-finding mission into the situation until just this week. Environmental agencies around the world have also begun their own inquiries into the scandal, including in Canada, South Korea, and many countries in Europe. In the US, where the story originally broke, the Department of Justice has started a criminal investigation into VW, and a maximum fine from the Environmental Protection Agency could tally $18 billion. The automaker has responded so far by setting aside about $7.3 billion to fix the affected models. CEO Martin Winterkorn is also already gone, and Porsche boss Matthias Muller is taking the top spot. The company's next moves still aren't clear, though. "VW needs to be very open about what has happened, how it was possible that this could happen to make sure that this never happens again in the future," an anonymous, top shareholder in the company said to Reuters.

Volkswagen Golf GTE Sport Concept is good, clean, plug-in fun [w/video]

If racing and hypercars have shown us anything, it's that high performance and hybridization are not mutually exclusive. With the Golf GTE Sport Concept, Volkswagen is showing it understands that fact. This wild hatchback originally premiered at the annual Worthersee festival back in May, but it's making its auto show debut in Frankfurt. The Golf GTE Sport uses both gas and electric sources to develop 396 total system horsepower. That gas engine, a 1.6-liter, turbocharged four-cylinder, was swiped from the engine bay of Volkswagen's three-time World Rally Championship-winning Polo R WRC, and generates 295 hp on its own. A pair of electric motors – one per axle – each produce 113 hp, and are fed by a lithium-ion battery pack. Total electric range is an impressive 31 miles. Of course, you don't care about that. You care about what the Golf GTE Sport can do when you switch out of EV or hybrid mode and switch into GTE. In this setting, both the gas engine and electric motors kick in to deliver max performance. Sixty-two miles per hour arrives in just 4.3 seconds and the top speed is an impressive 174 mph. The styling is like a mix of older Golf concepts: VW's two Vision Gran Turismo cars, the Roadster and Supersport, with some of the current GTI thrown in. Check out our live images from Frankfurt and let us know what you think. World premiere of the Golf GTE Sport: Plug-in hybrid sports car catapults the GT idea to the future - Lightweight and high-strength body of the Golf GTE Sport is made of carbon - Concept car with a top speed of 280 km/h is a zero emission vehicle and a race car in one Five key facts about the Golf GTE Sport: 1. Golf GTE Sport is powered by a 295 kW / 400 PS plug-in hybrid system 2. Progressive Golf GTE Sport bridges the gap between road cars and racing sport cars 3. Avant-garde exterior design of the Golf GTE Sport perfects the idea of C-pillars with two-level construction 4. Golf GTE Sport debuts with digital instruments arranged on three levels and tailored to motor racing 5. Golf GTE Sport accelerates to 100 km/h in 4.3 seconds and has a top speed of up to 280 km/h on the racetrack Wolfsburg / Reifnitz, May 2015. Ringing in a new era: with the Golf GTE Sport presented as a world premiere at the legendary GTI event at Lake Worthersee on 14 May 2015, Volkswagen is catapulting the GT tradition into the future.