Car Manufacturer News
Volkswagen Shifts Gears on Diesel
Now that Volkswagen is being forced to go ahead with electric vehicle technology, with its TDI line in shambles, the German automaker is doing all it can to make sure competitors can’t thrive with diesel. The New York Times just published an interesting interview with Volkswagen CEO Matthias Muller, detailing out what all VW is up to in Germany, and it’s pretty funny.
Volkswagen is busy lobbying the German government to eliminate incentives for car shoppers to buy diesel-powered models. Can you imagine such an incentive in the United States? These types of programs are a big reason why diesels rule the market on the other side of the Atlantic. Without them, diesel sales would plummet, and that’s good news for VW.
Of course, a couple of years ago Volkswagen had absolutely no problem with these government diesel incentive programs. Now, the company wants to see that money go toward encouraging environmentally friendly vehicle technologies, like what VW is being forced to make now.
To be clear, Muller wanted to tell The New York Times that Volkswagen doesn’t think newer diesels should be banned from city centers, if they don’t emit illegal pollution levels (VW knows a thing or two about that). But it does think older diesels should be banned. With such a huge automaker opposing diesel, expect things to change.
Steven has been writing about cars and other transportation issues worldwide for over ten years. His love for cars started long before he can remember, with Corvettes and 911s being his first car-crushes. Since then, he has owned many types of vehicles and has come to appreciate a wide variety of models, the diverse car culture groups, and the automotive industry in general.
