The People Speak Out on Volkswagen Dieselgate

The People Speak Out on Volkswagen Dieselgate Volkswagen was recently caught cheating on emissions tests, involving nearly a half-million diesel cars in the United States and about 11 million vehicles worldwide. The implicated diesel models produce far more harmful emissions than legally permitted. As a result, many owners are taking to the Internet to voice their concerns and frustrations over Volkswagen Dieselgate. Scouring the Consumer Reports social channels, including our stories platform and Facebook, we find several key themes repeating: Common Social Themes Passion. Many owners are quite enthused about their cars, often citing choosing a VW TDI over a Toyota Prius for the superior driving dynamics and sense of community. Betrayal. Consumers bought the cars for fuel economy and saw appeal in the “clean diesel” marketing. Concern for unknown future costs and risks to current owners. Wonder at how this situation was allowed to occur and what VW executives were thinking. Anxiousness over whether VW will compensate owners and what that reimbursement may be—or whether any settlement will merely fund regulatory fines and pay plaintiff lawyer fees. The feedback via our stories platform is quite moving. There are many personal accounts of people buying a Volkswagen TDI for its efficiency, engaging dynamics, and low emissions. Many owners are dedicated environmentalists, with some even being employees of the National Park Services. Among the submissions, here are a few highlights from TDI owners: “The most important point to my mind is that VW has dumped countless tons of NOx into the atmosphere. This has undoubtedly contributed to negative health impacts around the world.” “In short, I feel betrayed. They lied to me, both directly (via ads and claims about the emissions by dealers) and indirectly (via the cheat used to trick the EPA). They’ve dumped pollutants into the atmosphere that my family, my friends, and I breathe. They’ve also made me an unwitting and unwilling accomplice in their environmental crime.” “I really don’t want this fix to make my car sluggish or to get lower fuel mileage since that’s the reason I chose it.” “I cannot reason in my head why they would do this. Especially because of the loyalty they have with the TDIs. It kind of makes me sick. I am not sure if I will come back to VW after this. It really will depend on how they choose to rectify this scandal. For them to make this right for me, they will need to make a fix that will not affect the performance or fuel mileage of my car.” “So when ‘dieselgate’ broke it was disheartening in the same way it would be if you discovered your best friend was committing fraud. I want to forgive, but there are trust issues now. Beyond that, I’m genuinely concerned about the future of my TDI. I’m not concerned about resale value so much as I am about the car’s performance after a recall. What will my mpg be?” “I can assure you I will never buy one again or ever recommend one.” “This is a corporate atrocity like no other. VW worked to commit this crime. Someone needs to go to jail.” A contrarian view: “I think the EPA should lower its standards to meet the VW engine spec. At least until the rest of the world cleans up its act. I feel betrayed by the EPA.” Uh, right. Interestingly, through the many impassioned tales of duplicity, owners were peeved at being sold a “clean” car that turned out not to live up to the promise. Yet the ask from consumers was often for a self-serving refund or other financial compensation—rather than an action to offset the environmental impact, such as planting a tree per car, or using any assessed financial damages to fund carbon offsets or to further alternative energy research. Share your thoughts on the Volkswagen dieselgate below, or click over to ConsumersUnion.org to share a longer-form story. Consumer Reports has no relationship with any advertisers on this website. Copyright © 2006-2015 Consumers Union of U.S.

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