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VW updates Scirocco with revised styling, new engines

The Scirocco is undoubtedly one of the better-looking models in the Volkswagen lineup, but introduced back in 2008, it's now been on the market - some markets, anyway - for the better part of six years. VW is said to have an all-new replacement in the works, but before that arrives, the German automaker has announced a facelifted version with revised styling and a new engine lineup.
Set to be revealed at the Geneva Motor Show next month, the new Scirocco benefits from updated styling front and rear, high-tech exterior lighting, a revised cabin space with some throwback retro touches, some new technologies and, of course, an array of fresh wheel options ranging from 17 to 19 inches.
The updated Scirocco will be offered with a wide array of engines right from the get-go, including four gasoline options and two diesels, spanning from 125 horsepower all the way up to the 280-hp Scirocco R. The 2014 model hits European showrooms in August, but unfortunately isn't any more likely to make the transatlantic voyage Stateside than the version it replaces. Still interested? There's plenty to see in the high-res image gallery above and details in the press release below.

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.

EPA message to automakers: You're on notice

With top administrator Gina McCarthy speaking about the "moral obligation for climate action" on Friday, the Environmental Protection Agency announced it would ramp up its oversight of the auto industry in the wake of Volkswagen's emissions cheating. In a letter sent to manufacturers Friday, the agency said it would begin examining cars to see whether they contained defeat devices "in addition to the standard emissions test cycles." "We are putting vehicle manufacturers on notice." Exactly how the agency plans to test for these devices – which are not devices per se, but algorithms contained in millions of lines of software code that govern vehicle functions – remains unclear. Christopher Grundler, the director of the EPA Office of Transportation and Air Quality, divulged few details in how the agency would uncover so-called defeat devices used by cheaters. "Not today – or actually ever – I'm not going to be describing what new ways we'll be using to detect these defeat devices." Later, he said engineers will have to "come up with some clever ways to do this." The only insight he offered was that the EPA, California Air Resources Board, and Environment Canada would partner on testing more cars for emissions and anomalies. Grundler also said the EPA would diversify its testing fleet. In addition to relying on vehicles provided by manufacturers, the federal agency will now also borrow cars from "private citizens" and utilize rental cars for tests. "We are putting vehicle manufacturers on notice," he said. Joint investigations between EPA and CARB have "been very successful in protecting human health and the environment," said Janet McCabe, the agency's acting administrator in the Office of Air and Radiation. "But we also know, and the Volkswagen violations before us now make it clear, we need to adapt and step up our oversight." That may include an increase in on-road testing in addition to the five emissions tests now more relied upon. The EPA owns and maintains 23 portable emissions-monitoring systems like the one used by West Virginia University researchers who first detected elevated levels of nitrogen oxide emissions from two Volkswagen diesel vehicles. Right now, they're almost exclusively deployed to monitor emission from heavy-duty vehicles, whose NOx emissions "dwarf" the amount produced by light-duty vehicles, which produce less than 2 percent of the total, according to the agency's figures.