Volkswagen Fun to Drive, Hell to Repair?
Dieselgate just keeps on going. Since the Volkswagen emissions scandal first broke in September, all VW diesel engines have been implicated in the scandal, the brand’s monthly sales have dropped by more than 24% and the company has been the target of more than one grassroots shaming effort.
With all of those developments, one has been noticeably absent: a repair plan.
VW has made public its plans to fix European diesel models and turned its U.S. repair plans over to the Environmental Protection Agency. However, the more than 500,000 American VW diesel drivers are still waiting to hear how the German carmaker will fix their cars, which currently emit as much as 40 times the legal limit of tailpipe pollutants. The company offered them a $1,000 olive branch, but that’s about it.
We contacted some of those owners to see just how they feel. We asked them about their feelings on the Volkswagen brand, the loss of vehicle value and the implications of an imperfect — and still unknown — repair plan.
Fun to drive
Intriguingly, though the owners we spoke to bought their VW diesels for various reasons, be they economic, environmental or otherwise, they all said one of the deciding factors in their purchase was the torque-y, quick-accelerating feel the cars offered.
“We wanted a car that got good mileage but was also fun to drive,” said Dr. Marcus Braun, who bought a 2015 VW Golf TDI with his wife earlier this year. “And the Golf really fit that bill.”
The TDI was more than a peppy new car, it was an investment in a brand he trusted (his first car was a 1963 Karmann Ghia) and a technology he felt was a superior choice.
Moreover, the TDI solved a big problem concerning Braun: the lithium-ion batteries used in hybrids and EVs. Specifically, Braun is troubled with the environmental impact of the energy-intensive — and often dirty — process the batteries are produced. For Braun and his wife, the VW TDI seemed like a “great solution.”
2012 Golf TDI owner Scott Sandler echoed Braun’s fun-to-drive sentiment. Just like Braun, Sandler — together with his wife — chose the Golf for the peppy, well-built, and economical driving experience. However, unlike Braun, environmental impact of the high-mileage alternatives, like hybrids, weren’t at the forefront of his buying priorities.
Instead, he wanted a car with exceptional fuel economy that also had a manual transmission — something no longer offered in the hybrid market. Again, the Golf was the best choice. “It only cost $25,000,” Sandler bragged about his Golf, “and it drives like a car $10,000 to $20,000 more than that.”
“The car, it’s spacious, it’s super efficient, it’s comfortable, it’s well equipped and it was priced right,” said secondhand 2012 Passat TDI owner Nick Palermo. “I’ve owned a lot of VW diesels. In terms of driving dynamics, this one is so much better — and adds excellent efficiency.”
Impact
Though the TDI owners agree on the build quality, efficiency and fun-to-drive nature on the cars, they begin to diverge on their feelings about the cars — and VW as a whole — since the dieselgate scandal broke.
“[We are] pissed off,” Braun said. “We don’t want a polluting vehicle.”
Sandler sits on the other side of the pollution fence: “I’m disappointed but not particularly surprised. Corporate malfeasance is rampant.”
Sandler believes it’s a problem that the VW diesels pollute more than advertised. “But is it my problem? Not really,” he added, saying he doesn’t feel he’s doing the planet a disservice by continuing to drive his Golf.
Palermo wonders if his Passat, which emits far lower levels of tailpipe pollutants than Braun or Sandler’s Golf due its exhaust system, is even doing that much damage to the environment.
“We live in a country where people are purposefully blowing particulates ‘rollin’ coal’ but we’re going to get all in a huff about these VWs,” Palermo scoffed. “These TDIs are just pissing in the ocean.”
Intriguingly, no owner of a new or used VW TDI that we spoke to seemed overly concerned with loss in potential resale value, as all had intended to keep their car for the long term — 10 years or more.
Instead of value loss or harming the environment, Sandler’s biggest concern is that whatever fix for his car that VW has devised — and is signed off on by the EPA — will zap his car of its performance and efficiency, rendering it no fun to drive. “That will be no fix at all,” Sandler said.
Repairs
The owners understand that it’s likely that any fix aimed at bringing the cars into compliance with emissions laws will sacrifice some performance or efficiency — if not both. How they intend to respond to those changes is as diverse as their concerns with the current state of their cars.
Braun would consider keeping his Golf if, after the car is made emissions-compliant, the car retains it peppiness but returns 5 fewer miles per gallon than it does now. However, if the repair significantly reduces power or efficiency, Braun will just get rid of the car and take the loss.
That said, Braun is a realist about the repair prospects, saying it’s unlikely VW is going to be able to fix the car’s emissions in a way that makes he and his wife want to hold onto the vehicle.
Sandler has other plans. No matter the outcome of VW’s repair plan, he intends to keep his 2012 Golf.
“If the car sucks after I get it back, I’ll chip it,” Sandler said. By that, he means he’ll seek out an aftermarket tuner to reprogram the car’s onboard computer. He hopes an aftermarket shop will be able to undo VW’s repair, reverting his car back to pre-fix performance levels — if not higher. And he’ll just repeat that process every two years when he needs to re-register the car.
Palermo would prefer never turn over his Passat to VW for repairs. That’s because he already considers it the perfect car. If he has to, however, he’s not sure how he’ll respond to the repairs.
Unlike Sandler, Palermo would have to seriously weigh spending money chipping his car. Instead, he might just begrudgingly accept what remains of his car’s performance and efficiency — unless the cost of chipping it would restore enough efficiency that the improved fuel economy would pay for itself over time.
Goodwill
Amusingly, although all the owners readily signed up for the VW Goodwill program, which offered 2.0-liter TDI diesel owners $1,000 in prepaid gift cards, $500 of which is only redeemable at a VW dealership, none felt the money changed their feelings about their cars or Volkswagen as a whole.
“I don’t know why they would offer me the money,” said a 2015 Golf TDI lessee who asked to remain anonymous. “I’m essentially renting the car. Just give me my downpayment back and take the car away.”
A check-engine light just came on in Palermo’s Passat, so he’ll spend his Goodwill funds getting that sorted. Sandler’s Golf already has 84,000 miles on the odometer, so he and his wife are considering getting new shocks and struts, or maybe some tires.
Braun, on the other hand, whose Golf is brand-new, thinks he might instead blow the dealership-only $500 on a die-cast model of an old 1960s VW Bus — like he one his family had when he was growing up.
All of the owners admit that these are just their preliminary feelings and that they could well change after a repair plan is implemented. None, however, say they would likely buy another Volkswagen.