1966 Vw Baja Bettle - Off Road on 2040-cars

Auto blog

Angry diesel owners joining lawsuits against Volkswagen [w/video]

Livid at the prospect of losing thousands of dollars from the value of their cars and performance from their diesel engines, many owners of Volkswagens are headed to court. A law firm with a track record of suing automakers has already filed three class-action lawsuits against the German automaker related to its emissions-cheating scandal and says a fourth one is on the way. The lawsuits, filed by national firm Hagens Berman, accuse Volkswagen Group of America of fraudulent concealment, false advertising, and violations of federal and state laws. Plaintiffs in all 50 states have joined the class-action suits, according to the firm. A spokesperson says there has been "an unprecedented response" since the first lawsuit was filed within hours of an announcement from federal regulators last Friday. The lawsuits accuse Volkswagen Group of America of fraudulent concealment, false advertising, and violations of federal and state laws. Diesel owners paid thousands more for their vehicles instead of their gasoline-powered counterparts because Volkswagen's diesel engines ostensibly offered both torque and fuel economy. Now affected car owners are faced with a double-whammy – the value of their cars has diminished with the news and the purported software fix that brings the cars in emissions compliance will likely lower their performance and gas mileage. "Hundreds of thousands of consumers put their trust in VW when they looked to its 'Clean Diesel' line for an efficient, environmentally conscious diesel option," said Steve Berman, managing partner. "But for years, VW cheated the system. Its TDI line of fast but 'good-for-the-environment' cars seemed too good to be true, and they were." In its latest court filing, Hagens Berman lawyers said that car owners believed their vehicles were in compliance with Environmental Protection Agency standards and that the cars would retain their operating characteristics throughout their useful lives. Another firm, Girard Gibbs, has also filed a lawsuit over the diesel deception. "These Volkswagen vehicles should never have been sold, and certainly should not have spent the past six years on American roads polluting our air," said Eric Gibbs, the lead attorney. "Not only does this kind of fraud harm consumers and the environment, it negatively impacts competition, which is what drives our free-market system.

Audi, Porsche ensnared in new Volkswagen cheating allegations

The scope of the Volkswagen emissions cheating scandal that has enveloped the global automaker for the past six weeks widened Monday. Now, some of the automaker's premium brands are further ensnared in the mess. Officials with the Environmental Protection Agency issued a second notice of violations Monday, accusing Volkswagen of violating the Clean Air Act by using defeat devices that circumvent emissions testing on diesel versions of certain vehicles equipped with 3.0-liter engines. Roughly 10,000 vehicles in the United States contain the illegal software, the EPA alleges. That's a far smaller number than the 482,000 vehicles affected by the first instances of cheating, which Volkswagen confessed to in September. But this latest violation alleges the cheating occurred broadly through the Volkswagen empire and includes vehicles from the Porsche and Audi brands. Audi had one model, the A3, involved in the first round of announced violations. But the brand, which has enjoyed skyrocketing sales in the US in recent years, is more extensively involved in violations announced Monday. The 2016 Audi A6 Quattro, A7 Quattro, A8, A8L and Q5 are among the cars which contain the illegal software, which permits the cars to emit nitrogen oxide at up to nine times the allowable thresholds set in the Clean Air Act, according to the EPA. The 2015 Porsche Cayenne and '14 Volkswagen Toureg SUV are also affected. "There is clear evidence of additional violations and it's important to put Volkswagen on notice and to inform the public." - Janet McCabe. "Audi, which has been on a roll in terms of sales, reputation and image of late, now is being drawn deeper into the quagmire," said Michelle Krebs, senior analyst for Autotrader. "Previously, only the low-volume A3 was under scrutiny, but now Audi's core models are under fire." Audi officials did not respond to a request for comment Monday. In a written statement issued late Monday afternoon, a Porsche spokesperson said, "We are surprised to learn this information. Until this notice, all our information was that the Porsche Cayenne Diesel is fully compliant." Porsche said it would cooperate with authorities.

VW quite interested in solid-state batteries for EVs

Volkswagen is about to make a decision about which advanced battery technology the automaker will seriously investigate to give its electric vehicles more range. VW will decide by July if it will use solid-state batteries made by US-based QuantumScape Corp. in future EVs, according to Bloomberg News. Last year, VW bought a five-percent stake in QuantumScape, which was founded by ex-Stanford University researchers. The lure is that QuantumScape's solid-state batteries may provide a single-charge range of as long as 430 miles. That's more than three times the current range of the VW e-Golf electric vehicle the company recently started selling to the public and is substantially longer than the single-charge range of the Tesla Model S electric sedan. The batteries are also fireproof, making VW's potential decision one with an eye towards more vehicle safety. Solid-state battery technology, in which solid lithium electrodes are used instead of liquid electrodes such as those in lithium-ion batteries, are the subject of research at other automakers and suppliers as well. Toyota says they could be here by 2020. Recently, the cordless vacuum cleaner maker Dyson acquired a $15-million equity stake in Michigan-based battery maker Sakti3 with the idea of using the startup's solid-state batteries in its products. General Motors also has a minority stake in Sakti3, which was spun off from the University of Michigan.