Audi's Top Gun Throws Down: U.S. Gov't Has "Fallen In Love" With EVs

You have to give him credit, Johan de Nysschen does not beat around the bush. He just goes straight in for the kill.

If you did not already hear, it was alleged that back in September Nysschen said the "Volt is a car for idiots." Well, leave it to Audi's top gun to throw down again. And he's not saying sorry, at least yet.

Detroit News reports:

"Washington -- Audi's top U.S. executive warned that political leaders have "fallen in love" with electric vehicles even though it could take two decades before they are in widespread use.

At a speech at the National Press Club today, Audi of America President Johan de Nysschen reiterated his belief that vehicles like the extended-range plug-in electric Chevrolet Volt are not currently financially viable without government support.

General Motors Co. plans to start selling the extended range vehicle that will travel up to 40 miles on battery power late next year.

"The 50 percent or so price increase that the Volt represents over a similar gasoline car cannot be offset through the savings from reduced fuel compensation," de Nysschen said. "The only way to offset the extreme premium is through taxpayer-funded subsidies."...

Is Nysschen right? Is the U.S. government becoming too cozy to the idea of electric vehicles? Or, is the Audi chief bias due to their huge investment in diesel technology?

Let us know, SPIES!


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Joe_Limon - 12/14/2009 10:35:39 PM

-2 Boost

He is entirely correct. But since when were hybrid buyers good at math? If you care about saving money you wouldn't be buying a new car in the first place, let alone one with a premium.

Joe_Limon - 12/15/2009 12:30:58 AM

-3 Boost

It doesn't work. You don't spend $20,000+ on a new vehicle in order to save gas money.

800over - 12/18/2009 10:00:25 AM

+2 Boost

You do if you're up for a new car anyway....you do if you're driving a 35k larger sedan and you trade every 3 years. You do if you want to appear a certain way/make a statement. You do if you want the latest tech. You do if you don't care about performance. There are a million reasons that people buy cars, not just for the straight fuel economy. People buy trucks for the same reasons. Doesn't matter to me. But if someone is currently driving a 5 year old Accord and they're ready to trade, what's wrong with choosing a Prius if they want better fuel economy?

Joe_Limon - 12/15/2009 1:15:02 AM

-1 Boost

1997, Audi marketed its first mass produced hybrid electric vehicle called the Audi duo. It was powered by a 90hp TDi and a 29hp electric motor. Weird, the same year that the Prius was introduced to japan! I don't think he's talking out of his ass and commend him for standing up against what the mass media machine spews out.

Joe_Limon - 12/15/2009 1:20:55 AM

-2 Boost

continues... there were only 60 duo's ever sold and due to the poor selling European manufacturers have since focused on developing diesel engines.

quizz - 12/15/2009 10:04:46 AM

+3 Boost

EV needs further R&D before it's truly ready for mass consumption. The problem is that it needs to be artificially supported for a period of time before the R&D finally produces something that's usable by the masses. If the government wants to accelerate R&D of EV, it has no choice but to subsidize the damn thing.

LexSucks - 12/15/2009 10:33:45 AM

+5 Boost

U.S Gov't Has "Fallen In Love" with EVs and Audi has fallen in love with overpriced, underpowered vehicles.

Steve - 12/15/2009 12:03:25 PM

-1 Boost

Remember the "Freedom Car"? It runs on clean hydrogen. The only problem is finding an economical and "green" way to create and deliver auto-fuel-grade hydrogen to a mass market. Then recall the Hybrid love affair. Hybrids get tax subsidies while more efficient, less poluting small diesels, don't. And now, we have the love affair with the electric car. Everyone knows that electricity comes out of a wall-mounted power socket, and produces no polution at all (forget about the generating stations' carbon foot-pring, cost of electricity, etc.)

If you want to sell cars, make what the public *wants*, no matter how ill-informed they may be. If you want to be right, take Audi's position and bash the hucksters who are making the sales that you're not.

Audiphile - 12/15/2009 1:51:56 PM

+1 Boost

Diesel cars sell well everywhere in the world except for the U.S.

Why? For one thing, diesel fuel is not as cheap or readily available as it should be in this country,for three inter-related reasons:
1. U.S. refineries are not optimized for diesel production, thus limiting the supply.
2. diesel cars have not been selling well in this country, thus not much demand for diesel fuel for passenger cars.
3. the mass media, public advocacy groups and some government entities have "fallen in love" with hybrid cars, thus alternative technologies (especially fossil-fuel technologies) don't get favorable coverage or regulation.

Yeah, yeah, I know "parallel hybrid" cars like the Prius burn fossil fuel too, and "series hybrid" cars like the Volt are charged with electricity generated mostly from nuclear power and from the burning of fossil fuels. Try telling that to the mass media or to the masses themselves.

But it's not all the media's fault. The car manufacturers haven't been marketing diesel cars very aggressively. Diesel also has to live down memories of smelly, sooty, sluggish, clattery diesel cars sold in this country in the 1970s.

Joe_Limon - 12/15/2009 3:46:43 PM

0 Boost

Doesn't your second point work against itself? I thought diesel prices would increase if the demand increases for it. At least in the short term.

Audiphile - 12/15/2009 4:27:19 PM

0 Boost

Joe_Limon,

I don't know what part of the country you are located, but in Virginia diesel prices have been significantly higher than premium-grade gasoline for most of the last two years.

The reason is that U.S. diesel refining capacity has been "maxed out". (The additional refining needed to produce ultra-low-sulfur diesel fuel has put a further strain on refining capacity.) The non-consumer segments of the U.S. economy have long recognized the superior fuel-efficiency of diesel engines, leading to increased demand for diesel fuel.

The demand for diesel fuel in PASSENGER CARS, however, remains low because diesel-powered PASSENGER CAR sales are low.

There are some glimmers of hope, however. The Audi A3 TDI, BMW 335d and Volkswagen Jetta TDI have recently gotten some favorable press reviews and won some prestigious awards. Let's hope that this is the beginning of a diesel renaissance in the U.S.

Joe_Limon - 12/15/2009 4:54:57 PM

+1 Boost

Exactly, so if diesel production is maxed out, any more demand for it will result in an increase in price. Which works against your reason that the low demand is the reason it is high in the first place.

Audiphile - 12/15/2009 2:01:23 PM

-1 Boost

To conclude, the Federal and state governments should adapt a "technology-neutral" approach to energy policy. Decisions about whether cars should be powered by gasoline engines, diesel engines, hybrid powerplants, hydrogen, hydrogen fuel cells, or whatever, should be decided by the marketplace and the science/engineering community, not by bureaucrats.

Audiphile - 12/16/2009 11:00:57 AM

+1 Boost

Joe-Limon,

I stated that diesel fuel is not as CHEAP or READILY AVAILABLE as it should be. One of the reasons for the somewhat limited availability of diesel fuel is low demand, i.e. there are not that many diesel-powered PASSENGER CARS. If diesel-powered cars were to become more popular, more gas stations would sell diesel fuel. It's a sort of "chicken or egg" situation.
You are right about increased demand causing prices to rise, at least in the short run. However, diesel fuel prices have come down within recent months for three reasons.
One, the recession has reduced industrial/commercial demand for diesel fuel.
Two, the oil industry is slowly beginning to reconfigure U.S. refineries to increase diesel fuel yield. This is an expensive, time-consuming process, exacerbated by the need for ultra-low-sulfur diesel fuel, unique needs of the California market, etc.
Three, as diesel fuel is similar (not identical) to heating oil, when the refineries "retune" for the winter to increase their heating oil yield they are able to increase their diesel fuel yield as well.

mpls - 12/16/2009 11:12:51 AM

+1 Boost

Let the market place decide or "marketing", just like the 1980s in UK where the VAG group resorted to making fun of the Japanese in order to market their Golf and polos. The type of adverts that would be considered racist in todays term

Neverfollow - 12/16/2009 12:55:23 PM

+1 Boost

E-tron anybody?