WHOSE Resale Value Is MORE In Jeopardy? GERMAN Diesels Or GERMAN Cars, In General?

A lot will depend on how fast VW moves to fix the problem and how it manages PR. Winterkorn's removal will have a big impact and his replacement has to hit the ground running like Mary Barra did.

VW should immediately institute a bumper-to-bumper 5 year/50K mile warranty with a 10/100 powertrain warranty.

The last big debacle for VWAG was the satan-possessed Audis that suddenly accelerated. Their strategy then was to say nothing was wrong and their arrogance imploded Audi, which still terribly lags Mercedes and BMW for sales in the USA.

In the USA, as cars are replaced they should also institute new names and a totally new look to convey a total transformation.

Or VW could do the honorable thing and pack up and go home.

The problem is - as I said before - All Automakers regularly test and check the vehicles of their competitors when they make new models so that they can compete. So - I would expect that automakers in the USA at least - had to know about the work around long ago. I suspect we are not seeing all that will eventually pan out. How many other vehicles have software workarounds?

Now the first thing consumers will want is proof that a manufacturers cars DO indeed meet the emissions requirements. And they are not going to take the same manufacturers test as proof - they will want independent proof. And ALL auto makers have no choice but to do it and do it NOW>

I view myself as a "rational" guy. Even so, Volkswagen Audi Group (VAG) is now suspect to me. It's one thing to have a defect, and to try to sweep it under the rug (e.g., GM's ignition switch defect, in which >100 deaths have been linked.) It's quite another to set out to deliberately circumvent emission laws, and while doing so, brag about how "green" you are.

I wonder, how extensive is VAG's dishonesty? I know other examples, such as advertising only their "premium" MMI in their Q5, and supplying that in their demo cars to reviewers, but if you buy a Q5 without the Navigation system, you get not only a much lesser MMI, you also lack a number of features that aren't related at all to Navigation (e.g., true voice recognition for initiating phone calls, a "personal" mode in Drive Select, etc.) Of course, Audi doesn't tell you they have two MMIs, and they only show the good one in their marketing and car reviews.

VG's pain has just begun :-(

Resale aside, I'm wondering how this will affect VW/Audi sales, in the short and long term. It made while aside VAG's bragging rights that each month, for years and years, they've beat sales records. Let's watch the graph and see if it now takes a turn down as it goes to the right.

VW/Audi, you've messed up, big time :-(

(Disclosure: I'm a first-time Audi owner, having purchased a 2015 Q5 3.0 diesel. As at this time, my engine has NOT been identified as a problem model. Still, I'm not feeling good about this scandal.)

Just VW vehicles will be harmed. The testing that caught VW showed that BMWs met the standard, demonstrating it can be done. Ergo, not all German diesels are bad. And diesels that can meet the standard produce less CO2/mile than gas vehicles because they are more fuel efficient so they do have value in the fleet. Indeed VWs can meet it by switching the devices ON as they did for testing. IF and that is a big IF, VW promptly fixes the cars that are out there now, and compensates the owners for the reduced fuel economy that they will likely see in the future (still better than gas VWs) they might lessen the damage.

Vette71: You are correct that VW can meet emission standards simply by removing the "defeat" code in their engine management computer.

But the big question is why they chose to implement it at all. There had to be something to gain by doing so, and that "something" will be affected. Possibilities of what *MIGHT* be affected include:
- Engine smoothness (vibration)
- Power curve and peak power
- Fuel economy
- Component durability
- Sound (people hate the classic diesel clatter sound)

Imagine being an affected owner, having the shop fix the illegal software, then you suddenly notice something has changed, not to your liking, like the engine is less peppy, feels anemic when passing, or clatters like a semi.

The hidden *reason* why VW chose to do this illegal thing will soon come to light, and there might be massive consumer backlash about it.

@The Steve. It could be any of those reasons and the current users will see some difference in what their vehicles do for them. VW should compensate them. But note that VW diesels have been around for a long time with a track record of durability and outstanding fuel mileage. And fuel mileage was the basis of their marketing campaign as their weapon against hybrids. My bet is the fuel mileage was the the driver behind this. The EPA NOx clean up is in the exhaust system. Reduced flow and burning off the soot accumulated by the diesel catalytic converter cuts into fuel mileage. When my Jeep GC diesel goes into clean up mode I can see it in mpg calculator. Still, having a 2.5 ton brick that gets 31 mpg at 72mph versus a hemi V8 (both tow the same weight)that does 19 mpg and the diesel is better for the environment (emits less CO2, plus N and H2O) is worth it.