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VW beams in Star Trek stars to promote e-Golf EV

Volkswagen just set its e-mobility commercial phasers on stunning. The German automaker has cast Captain Kirk and Mr. Spock of Star Trek fame (i.e., actors William Shatner and Leonard Nimoy) in a new advertisement for its growing stable of electric vehicles. Even though it's in German, we think you can get the idea. VW went Hollywood and cast the two veteran actors in a futuristic-themed 45-second ad, which sees Shatner cruise up in the e-Golf (with a toothy Trek-fan kid in tow) while Nimoy rocks the XL1 and the Trek theme blares in the background. Forget for a moment that the kid in the commercial wasn't even born when Shatner started pitching for Priceline, let alone the original Trek series and just enjoy the wholesome good humor of Shatner saying that the electric powertrain is just like the one in a spaceship. If you've got any familiarity with Spock, you should be able to understand his punch line, too. Of course, if you'd rather your German vehicle advertisements were set in the Star Wars universe, we recommend clicking here. VW will bring the e-Golf to the states in November at a price of $35,445, about $6,500 higher than the Nissan Leaf's starting pricetag. You can see the new ad and a number of related behind-the-scenes videos (in English) below. Our Quick Spin of the E-up! are available here. This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings. This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings. This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings. This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings. This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings. This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings.

Caddy XT4, Subaru STI Type RA, and blazin' Elon | Autoblog Podcast #553

On this week's Autoblog Podcast, Editor-in-Chief Greg Migliore is joined by Senior Editor Alex Kierstein and Green Editor John Snyder. We talk about time spent with the Cadillac XT4 and Subaru WRX STI Type RA. Then we get into other topics, including the death of the VW Beetle, our thoughts on the state of the Nissan 370Z, cameras replacing mirrors, the trouble with the Ford Focus Active, and Elon Musk blazing a fat blunt. We indulge in a little conversation about the process of writing about cars. Finally we help a listener choose their next EV in the "Spend My Money" segment.Autoblog Podcast #553 Get The Podcast iTunes – Subscribe to the Autoblog Podcast in iTunes RSS – Add the Autoblog Podcast feed to your RSS aggregator MP3 – Download the MP3 directly Rundown Cars we've driven: Cadillac XT4 and Subaru WRX STI Type RA RIP, VW Bug What's up with the Nissan 370Z? Lexus to replace side mirrors with cameras RIP, Ford Focus Active You do you, Elon On writing about cars Spend My Money: electric edition Feedback Email – Podcast@Autoblog.com Review the show on iTunes Related Video: Green Podcasts Cadillac Ford Lexus Nissan Subaru Tesla Volkswagen Car Buying Technology Coupe Crossover Electric Police/Emergency Sedan cadillac xt4 subaru wrx sti type ra

VW sets aside $7.3B war chest for diesel scandal fallout

The crisis enveloping Volkswagen AG, the world's top-selling carmaker, escalated Tuesday as the company issued a profit warning following a stunning admission that some 11 million of its diesel vehicles worldwide were fitted with software at the center of a US emissions scandal. The German company said it was setting aside around 6.5 billion euros ($7.3 billion) to cover the fallout from the scandal that has tarnished VW's reputation, raised questions over the future of CEO Martin Winterkorn and battered its share price. The reputational damage to Volkswagen is implicit in the market's response. Volkswagen's share price slid a further 16.2 percent Tuesday to a near four-year low of 112 euros. The fall comes on top of Monday's 17 percent decline. The shockwaves from the scandal enveloping Volkswagen were being felt far and wide across the sector as traders wondered who else may get embroiled. Germany's Daimler AG, the maker of Mercedes-Benz cars, was down 6.5 percent, while BMW AG fell 5.4 percent. France's Renault SA was seven percent lower. The scandal is hugely damaging to a business that relies heavily on a hard-won reputation for quality and trustworthiness. "Brands are all about trust and it takes years and years to develop. But in the space of 24 hours, Volkswagen has gone from one people could trust to one people don't know what to think of," said Nigel Currie, an independent UK-based sponsorship and branding consultant. The trigger to the company's market woes was last Friday's revelation from the US's Environmental Protection Agency that VW rigged nearly half a million cars to defeat US smog tests. The company then admitted that it intentionally installed software programmed to switch engines to a cleaner mode during official emissions testing. The software then switches off again, enabling cars to drive more powerfully on the road while emitting as much as 40 times the legal pollution limit. "We have totally screwed up." - Michael Horn "In my German words: we have totally screwed up," the head of Volkswagen's US division, Michael Horn, told an audience in New York on Monday. In its statement Tuesday, Volkswagen gave more details, admitting that there were "discrepancies" related to vehicles with Type EA 189 engines and involving some 11 million vehicles worldwide. The number of vehicles involved is more than the 10 million or so cars it sold in 2014.