VW diesel saga

[AutobahnSHO]

Continues, with a lot of European cars being 'fixed'. Some claim it ruins the car:

https://www.yahoo.com/news/modified-european-vw-diesels-undrivable-owners-133000958.html

[Soup DeVille]

Of course. If VW could have produced a good product that met all the regulations, they would have.

[Tave]

Make it rain baby!!!

Just got a letter in the mail that Bosch was a bad bad boy too and owes me $350 on top of VW's payout/buyback.

[cawimmer430]

Many owners complain that this new software upda... excuse me... DOWNGRADE... now messes with their fuel economy and performance. In many cases the cars have become slower and the fuel economy has worsened.

[93JC]

Of course. That's precisely why they cheated in the first place.

[MX793]

Good
Clean
Cheap

Pick 2.

[AutobahnSHO]

Of course. That's precisely why they cheated in the first place.

+1

But the report of cars stalling and whatnot surprises me..

[shp4man]

Trump. All's I'm sayin' 

[giant_mtb]

Trump. All's I'm sayin' 

I think you need some more locker room...I mean, rap...in your life.

[cawimmer430]

So essentially the new software has the nasty side effect of reducing torque (and horsepower) and worsening fuel economy with the consequence that the cars pollute more than before.

The cheater diesels were "cleaner" than the "software-improved models", eh? 


I have to go on a bit of a rant here with my jumbled up thoughts.

What really pisses me off is how European politicians react to world events with the intention of doing what exactly? It basically follows the formula of "react first, get those new laws in place, deal with the problems later".

What I find annoying are the ongoing discussions in Europe to ban diesel cars from cities, specifically city centers for the "health of their citizens". This would literally mean banning all taxis, most police cars, trucks and delivery vans and emergency response vehicles.

Great foresight. Seriously.

Oh no, someone had a heart attack in the city center, time is precious - well sucks for them, the diesel-powered ambulance is banned from racing to their position!

Whoops, some bad boys robbed a bank! Sucks that those diesel-powered police cars can't pursue them!

I'm exaggerating, because there will be exceptions in emergencies, but this being Germany, with retards making the laws, I can actually see this happening. I mean there is something here called... wait for it... wait for it... an AIR TAX. Sounds horrible, eh? But don't worry, we're not taxed for the air that we breathe - this tax is about property borders. 

Anyway, if this diesel ban occurs then the people who bought diesel-powered luxury cars and SUVs may have no choice and buy the same car with a gasoline engine (or an electric/hybrid setup). So yeah, a fat and heavy gas-guzzling gasoline-powered SUV is totally good for environment. It burns more fuel and still spews out more particulates than a diesel but hey, it's "better" for the environment and our health. Right? Great logic there, politicians.

And eventually these wannabe tree-hugging bastards are going to go after gasoline-powered cars. Because let's face it; cars pollute. Even modern gasoline-powered cars aren't that clean. Direct-injection in gasoline engines actually results in more particulates being emitted than in modern diesels! Particulates are also caused by braking (brake dust) and tire wear and tear. Cars pollute, whether they are powered by a gasoline, a diesel, an electric, a hybrid a magic unicorn dust, a nuclear, a fusion or a warp engine! There are already some green party politicians who are calling for an unrealistic ban of all internal combustion engined cars from the cities.

If these political hypocrites were serious about the health and well-being of their citizens they'd start by taxing the shit out of cigarettes and alcohol. That's a great way to make more money and prevent more people, especially the younger generation, from perhaps even picking up these bad habits. If politicians were serious about our health they would tell the sugar lobby to go fuck themselves and remove hidden sugars from our foods. Sugar is responsible for so many health issues. They'd ban trans-fats from foods which clog your arteries. But nope, those things are perfectly fine - even though they damage our health, moreso than our exposure to city pollution. Blame the car drivers, they're clearly the bad guys and contribute so much to our poor health! 

Thanks to the Volkswagen diesel scandal us German drivers are going to be penalized with another tax - a CO2 tax in 2018. So if you own a car in Germany you're paying taxes at the fuel pump, you pay a yearly car tax, your insurance costs depend on your driving record and power/engine cc output/size and fuel type and you're going to get slapped with a CO2 tax for a good measure. Basically, the politicians want us to trade in our evil internal combustion-powered cars and switch over to electric vehicles. The upcoming toll for our highways will also be lower for those who drive "environmentally friendly vehicles."

Norway has recently proposed banning all internal combustion engines from their country - and many European nations are thinking of following this example. They want their citizens to buy electric cars despite the lack of proper charging infrastructure and the still relatively high cost of electric cars.

In this type of situation a gradual change is best, not this forced overnight change. Learn by doing, gain experience, see where and what needs to be done and improved to help the situation. That's how it should be, but not this "shoot first and ask questions later" policy. European politicians can often be such retards who don't think shit through. Act first, force those laws into place and then deal with the problems later. Fucking retards. 


European politicians want (or pretend to want) to save the world. In my opinion it's not going to work. It has to be a GLOBAL EFFORT, not a local one. Other countries like China, Russia or the United States pollute so much and make no real effort to reduce their CO2 signatures or even penalize their citizens for polluting. Entire continents like South America, Africa and in most of Asia all have no or extremely lax pollution laws - and this is not going to change anytime soon.

[MX793]

Diesel and gasoline engines pollute differently.  Diesel tends to output less CO2, but much higher NOx (which causes smog and acid rain, arguably more damaging than CO2).  They also produce more soot/particulates unless a trap/filter is in place.  Petrol is worse for CO2, but better for NOx and particulates, though a lot of the new DI turbos put out a fair bit of particulates.

One of the reasons diesels have a hard time in the US vs Europe is because of differences in the types of emissions the two regions of the world try to control.  Europe is predominantly concerned with CO2.  The US has more stringent controls on NOx.

[cawimmer430]

Diesel and gasoline engines pollute differently.  Diesel tends to output less CO2, but much higher NOx (which causes smog and acid rain, arguably more damaging than CO2).  They also produce more soot/particulates unless a trap/filter is in place.  Petrol is worse for CO2, but better for NOx and particulates, though a lot of the new DI turbos put out a fair bit of particulates.

One of the reasons diesels have a hard time in the US vs Europe is because of differences in the types of emissions the two regions of the world try to control.  Europe is predominantly concerned with CO2.  The US has more stringent controls on NOx.

Yep.

But it is infuriating to listen to all these politicians talking about banning internal combustion engines while attempting to force everyone to drive electric cars. They must think that money grows on trees and that everyone needs an electric car.

For some people electric cars make sense and are usable, particularly if they have a routine and do most of their driving in the city. For people like me, who do a lot of mixed driving, an electric car makes no sense. In fact a diesel car would suit my needs perfectly. Amazing range and low fuel consumption. When you listen to the bullshit that politicians in high end talk shows (aka the German versions of Larry King...) spew you cannot help but be angry and disgusted at their mentality.

"Electric cars? Well if you're low on power just pull into the next gas station and charge your car for the next 30 minutes. What's the problem?



Some of us have tight time schedules and can't afford to spend 30 minutes charging a battery to 80%. Plus, the infrastructure for electric cars is not there yet.

Oh well, I just love ranting about our idiotic German politicians at the moment. Elections are coming up and honestly I feel like not voting. All our political parties fail to impress me and they are full of empty promises. Plus many of them are anti-automobile, and as a car enthusiast that offends me! 

[2o6]

IDK, electric cars are becoming more usable by the day. The Chevy Bolt is about the size of an old A-class and gets like 400km of range.

[cawimmer430]

IDK, electric cars are becoming more usable by the day. The Chevy Bolt is about the size of an old A-class and gets like 400km of range.

Oh I agree. They are becoming useful with increased range.

But for some of us who do a lot of mixed driving and have tight time schedules, an electric car doesn't make sense. Maybe if they have a range of 1,000 km (which goes down to 500 km when you speed on the Autobahn) then they'll be interesting for me. A lot of my driving for business purposes consists of heading out to one town for a shoot/meeting clients and then heading over to the next town for a shoot or meeting another client(s). Thank god for the Autobahns or else I would not get there in time - and when you floor an electric car you empty the battery charge pretty quickly.

I wouldn't mind an electric car for city use because everything in Munich is pretty close. I adore the Renault Zoe, but a Citroen e-Berlingo would be cool and useful for me. 

[Soup DeVille]

Don't they already tax the shit out of cigarettes and alcohol in Germany?

[cawimmer430]

Don't they already tax the shit out of cigarettes and alcohol in Germany?

Yes, but not enough.

Smoking is so widespread here. If they raised the taxes on the cancer sticks then they would improve their revenue and at the same time possibly prevent some people (the younger generation) from picking up the habit. The really addicted smokers will spend less on other consumables in order to fund their addiction.

I despise cigarettes and their offensive stench. When I walk through the city I am attacked by the disgusting stench of cigarette smoke from all sides. German/Europeans love cancer sticks. It's really disgusting.

But instead when the government needs money they will penalize German drivers. Literally. At least that is the sentiment among German drivers. Many are angered at the upcoming tolls for the Autobahn (more expensive for Germans, cheaper for foreigners!!! WTF!?) and of course the CO2 tax which is coming in 2018.

[AutobahnSHO]

Seems here (New York) they tax cigarettes like crazy so the price is high and it's easier to justify meth and heroine... 


Just a random thought, not sure if that's part of why there are so many junkies in New England..