Talk Morgan Forums Community Vehicle Talk (non-Morgan) VW group cars diesel emissions issue

There is both deceit and self deception with sales data for all cars. We know that the official fuel consumption figures, the only ones the manufacturers are legally allowed to quote, are simply nonsense yet we take note of them when buying a car. At the same time, every car manufacturer sets up to achieve the best CO2 numbers that the regime of the test will allow so doing things like pumping tyres up to 5 bar, running without alternator charging, no aircon etc. The power figures quoted are not at the wheels, the only place it matters but at the flywheel. Weights are quoted often without fuel and oil. And thats forgetting the carefully selected and fettled press cars. Etc Etc.

But the biggest issue of all is that the CO2 and NOx numbers, if they are looked at at all, are looked at by a general public most of whom dont know even what an mg is let alone what oxides of nitrogen are and what they do or do not do to MMGW and air pollution. So I dont see how they can be deceived.

There is more than a bit of hysteria in the public reaction to the VW scandal. The owners were overwhelmingly happy with their cars but now they are outraged about something that most dont understand. Could it be that they fancy some compo and/or a new car?

If you think about it, its similar to the British public reaction to the EU

I'm as qualified as any to have an opinion on the subject, I own two VW cars, both purchased brand new, one's a diesel touran and the other is an Up.
They both do their jobs perfectly, they were purchased to provide dependable, safe transport cost effectively, I'll keep them 'till they don't and therefore consider that I've already lost all the purchase price. When I want fuel economy I press the throttle less and avoid braking, but normally, I drive as fast as the law allows.

VW sold me exactly what I asked for, whether it's in the right tax bracket or not would make no difference to emissions, I'd be driving it exactly the same, the government would just have a few more pounds to spend on more studies or whatever they do.

The up will no longer be providing safe reliable transport however, some dozy bint in an SUV rear-ended it while stationary on Saturday and punted it 20ft across a yellow box junction. And here's the thing, why are we out to bankrupt one of the few companies who make good cars, lots of money was spent developing that UP to make sure a little farty car would be safe, four people were in there, the rear passengers only 12" from the front bumper of the dimwit, the boot floor is crushed but the passengers were completely unharmed.

I'm now in the market for a new UP and as far as I can see, they're not any cheaper!

I have been reading comments about what VW have offered US owners in the form of compensation and car "repair".
The vast majority of owners are more than happy with the offer, some making a profit out of it. There is a small minority of what appears to be greedy b*****s or purely awkward owners shouting for even more. Some may not even be owners!This amounts to about $10billion for owners. There will then be possible fines on top. Some owners have also cited the difference in treatment VW have had compared to GM and Ford, especially GM where about 50 deaths have occured due to car faults and yet no government action taken.
Smells a bit like the BP oilspill scenario to me.
It looks like VW have held their hands up and done the right thing by owners.

How can you say that your out of pocket was directly the result of the emissions..?

I agree.

My hybrid Merc is sold with figures of 134mpg and 49 CO2s. It apparantly achieves this under test conditions by starting with a fully charged battery and not switching on the petrol until 2/3 of the way through the test.

To my mind this is no more valid than a VW which is set up to maximise it's test performance.

In the real world my M3W has given better mpg over 12,500 miles than I get with the Merc (32.5 mpg for the Mog, 31ish for the MB).

Because Ken sold it to a w##ker!

(Sorry, couldn't resist)

How do you know he was a walker, he might have been a jogger.

After 2 Golf GTI's and a couple of Golf R32's, three Audi's and Mrs Tufties Skoda I have been a good supporter of the brand. For me it's about trust and brand equity, very disappointed, if naively in a brand I trusted.

Paul - why VAG just achieved the same result as the others except they did it by software rather than by setting up the cams and exhausts to pass the tests. The outputs in real world situations are pretty much the same.

As one of the others said they are cars which do what is asked, are reliable and give good mpg. What more do you want?

I have no connection with VAG by the way!!!

Look no further than F1 for creative rule challenging design. Such thinking rubs off down the food chain. Most big manufacturers have had examples of poor design, or questionable electronics over the years.

I like VW as a combination of an everyman badge and high build quality. Although I have to say that my Mk6 Golf is not as well put together as my Mk4 was. The cut corners are obvious.