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Recharge Wrap-up: VW Golf TDI wins green car award, DC buses might go electric

The 2015 Volkswagen Golf TDI has won the award for 2014 Northwest Green Car or the Year. The distinction comes from the Northwest Automotive Press Association during its Drive Revolution event in Portland. Co-chairman of the event, Jeff Zurschmeide, says, "Volkswagen has led the diesel passenger car market for years, and the Golf TDI proves that they're likely to stay on top for a while." The 2015 Golf TDI has 10 more horsepower than the outgoing model, while improving fuel economy thanks to a new engine. It also has a base price $3,000 lower than the 2014 Golf TDI. Read more in the press release below. The BMW i8 gets its laser high-beam headlights from lighting company Osram. The laser lights use half the energy of their LED counterparts, according to BMW, which is important when one is trying to get every last bit of range out of the car's battery. The laser high beams can also reach about twice as far as LED lighting. Because of their brightness, they won't be available on cars sold in the US. In laser-equipped i8s, the laser high beams will not work below 60 kilometers per hour, nor when other lights are detected in front of the vehicle. Head to Automotive News Europe to read more. Renault has delivered a fleet of 30 Kangoo ZEs to Uruguay's government-owned power company, UTE. The electric fleet will allow the company to reduce its CO2 emissions by 36 metric tons, says Renault. 84 percent of Uruguay's electricity comes from renewable sources, with a goal of 90 percent on the horizon. Uruguay aims to get a third of its electricity from wind farms by 2016, meaning these Kangoo ZEs will be powered in no small part by renewable energy. For Renault, "This order is a further sign of the interest in the region for electric vehicles," according to Denis Barbier, Renault's senior vice president, citing previous deliveries in Brazil, Mexico, Argentina and Colombia. Read more in the press release at Renault's website. Washington DC's "Circulator" bus routes may go electric. Some of the diesel buses, which were first put to work in 2003, are nearing the end of their life cycle, and DC sees an opportunity to make the switch to something a little greener. "Electric has not been a viable option in previous procurements, but now it is," says Will Handsfield, Georgetown Business Improvement District's transportation director. Handsfield is concerned about air quality, and says he also appreciates the long-term stability of electric rates compared to diesel.

VW uses NorCal Forest to make e-Golf carbon neutral

On the one hand, it's just a forest. There are beautiful redwood trees and clean air, cool, quiet creeks and hidden wildlife. You know, a forest. The kind that have existed for millions of years. On the other, it's a carefully managed collection of natural resources that lets companies pay money to make their products more beneficial to the environment. Welcome to the Garcia River Forest. For our purposes, the Garcia River Forest is interesting because of its connection to Volkswagen. Its young redwoods are helping Volkswagen create something almost unheard of in the automotive industry: a (mostly) carbon-neutral car. The 10,000-foot overview of how this works is as follows: when you buy the electric car, part of your money goes to support three carbon offset projects. These projects (the one in the Garcia River Forest, the Big River And Salmon Creek Forests in California, and the McKinney Landfill in Texas) have put a price on the value of not letting more carbon get into our atmosphere. The calculations come in the form of credits per metric ton of CO2 and VW has paid enough money to cover the emissions it generates during the production and distribution of the e-Golf as well as the charging for around 36,000 miles of driving. VW worked with 3Degrees, a provider of carbon offset services, to calculate the amount of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions that each e-Golf will be responsible for, from the factory to the driveway. The Garcia River Forest location is managed by The Conservation Fund (TCF). VW originally announced the carbon-neutral program back when it revealed US details for the e-Golf, in August 2013. Stuart Gardner, project manager at VW of America for the Golf family, told AutoblogGreen that the idea for the carbon offset came from the way VW understands plug-in vehicle buyers. "At Volkswagen, we strive to be leaders in e-mobility and developing alternative powertrains and we realize that, when someone buys an electric vehicle - the e-Golf, for example - they are doing more than just buying an electric vehicle," he said. "They are buying a lifestyle and they want to engage in this lifestyle." VW is not releasing the specific amount of the purchase price of each e-Golf that is directed to the Garcia River Forest (or any other carbon offset projects).

Anti-union group files lawsuit against VW and UAW

The fight for unionization at Volkswagen's Chattanooga, TN, factory isn't letting up. Yesterday, the National Labor Relations Board decided to allow anti-United Auto Workers employees at the plant the right to defend voting down the measure. Now, a group called the National Right to Work Foundation has filed a federal lawsuit on behalf of five workers against VW and the UAW for allegedly working together to organize.
The group says in a release that it wants "to block further collusion between the company and the United Auto Workers." It alleges that VW forced workers to attend "mandatory pro-union meetings" and prevented managers from opposing. In a rebuttal on its website, the UAW called the claims "baseless" and said its actions were entirely legal.
One possible problem faces the carmaker in regards to the lawsuit. According to the Detroit Free Press, a recent US Court of Appeals ruling found that neutrality agreements like the one the business had with the UAW could be illegal if the company provided "things of value" to the union. The newspaper also claims that VW held a mandatory employee meeting concerning the election, but workers were free to leave during the UAW's presentation.