Darn Dirty Diesel
Now, this
isn’t necessarily the most shocking thing ever, but it is a very slight
surprise. Because as many of you may know, VW basically has (well… HAD) a
monopoly on the diesel car market, to the point where they still have existing
plans to produce diesels for the North American market thru the 2019 model year
(pending some approval). However, beyond that point, VW says they’ll need to
reevaluate their U.S. powertrain lineups. Hinrich Woebcken, CEO of WW America,
has said that wherever diesel engines make sense for application, they will be
used. However, as tor the USA, VW’s diesel push is done. And besides, emission
regulations get stricter come 2019, so my guess is that we’re going to end up
seeing fewer diesel powertrains in the industry overall. Plus, the company
already owes dealers $1.2 billion in settlements, plans to implement a buyback
of unfixable vehicles, as well as provide compensation to owners. However, many
owners have stated they prefer buybacks to compensation. Not surprising, given
that buyback totals could range from roughly $12,000 to $34,000 dollars!
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| Volkswagen still unnamed new three row crossover. |
Starting
this fall, VW’s efforts to refocus their lineup will really begin. The biggest
buzz is all about their upcoming, still unnamed 7-passenger crossover. Its
scheduled to launch early next year and will compete with the likes of the new
2017 GMC Acadia, Dodge Durango, Ford Explorer, Honda Pilot, and other
7-passenger crossover vehicles. Additionally, there’s a new Tiguan-based small
crossover that will come out. Fast forward even further to the 2020 model year,
and VW plans to begin introducing electric vehicles and more hybrid technology
to the U.S. to compensate for their diesel losses.
Will these upcoming models employ these new technologies effectively? Will Volkswagen ever be able to return to their former form following this crisis? All of these questions will likely have answers in the future. Read up on some more at the links below.
- http://www.autonews.com/article/20160719/OEM11/160719836/vw-done-with-diesel-push-in-u-s-exec-says?cciid=email-autonews-blast
- http://blog.caranddriver.com/cash-money-owners-of-cheaty-vw-tdi-diesels-prefer-buybacks-to-fixes/
- http://blog.caranddriver.com/volkswagen-wont-attempt-to-regain-diesel-leadership-in-u-s-many-tdi-models-may-never-return/
Tesla's Master Plan
Tesla is
always up to something. And recently, Elon Musk announced that he has come up
with a “master plan” for the brand moving forward. He intends to have Tesla
become a renewable energy enterprise, meaning the brand will end up producing
more than just electric cars. Musk intends to do this by expanding Tesla’s
portfolio to solar products and services offered by SolarCity Corporation. This
makes sense, as it was proposed that Tesla purchase SolarCity prior to this
plan, and Elon Musk owns 22% of SolarCity’s shares. Now, Tesla is moving
forward with plans to purchase SolarCity Corp. for $2.6 billion. As a result of
this move, the combined companies can reach customers of both entities more
effectively and offer customers solar panels, home battery storage systems, and
electric cars under one umbrella. Tesla also expects achieve significant cost
savings as a result of the merger, saving roughly $150 million in costs after
the first full year of joint operations.
Under
provisions of the deal, Tesla will have 93.5 percent ownership of both
companies and SolarCity 6.5 percent. This deal should be completed sometime in
the fourth quarter of business. Given how much money Tesla is burning through
in order to launch the new Model 3 sedan and the recent investigation of the
company’s Autopilot software, it seems as if this agreement couldn’t come at a
better time. If all goes as planned, Tesla should be able to provide consumers
with everything they need to “live a largely carbon-free lifestyle” according
to Musk. You can find out more on this topic by following the link below. We
shall see how this works out for both companies in due time. Until all is said
and done, we can be sure of one thing: Tesla is staying on the offensive.
Transformers Assemble In Michigan!
Like cars?
Like action movies? Do you live in Michigan? Then you might be excited to know
that a rural portion of M-52 was closed recently to film for the next movie in
the popular series, “Transformers: The Last Knight”. Many fans of the franchise
gathered around to view a chase scene that was being taped, and both Bumblebee
and Optimus Prime were visible at certain times. One of my coworkers at my
internship in Webberville, Michigan actually showed me a picture of Optimus
Prime sitting at a truck stop and going down the road! Can you imagine how
surprised many people probably were to be sitting at a light and all of a
sudden have Bumblebee or one of the other vehicles pull up next to them? Can
you say, AWESOME???
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| Pictures taken by a coworker of mine from near the set of "Transformers: The Last Knight". |
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| Optimus Prime in the flesh! Well... In the steel. |
Are you a
Transformers fan? If so, what’s your favorite movie, and also, what various cars
are you looking forward to seeing in this new movie? While it may be too late
to see the cars and actors here in Michigan, here’s a bright side: There’s less
than a year until the new film releases!
