TDI Owners got the shaft on the Settlement

All us original owners really got the shaft on this "Settlement" deal. If you had a lease, you were made whole, because your lease was forgiven and you got a cash restitution amount. I bought my 2013 Beetle Convertible TDI cash for over $33,000 and my settlement amount is a little over $26,000, meaning I now have $7,000 less in my pocket to buy a new car than I did in 2013. I am a retired cop so I'm very familiar with Criminal Law. In California, what VW did was a violation of Section 487 of the Calif. Penal Code, Grand Theft, which is Felony and punishable by imprisonment in the State Prison. It this case, it is a Federal offense since it crossed state borders. A perfect example would be if I sold you an original oil painting for $33K and three years later you found out it was a fake. I would have been arrested, sentenced to jail time and the Judge would order me to pay restitution to you for the full amount, not some discounted number because the painting was used.

We were SOLD OUT by the Class Action Law Firms as well as the Federal and State Departments of Justice and the Federal court system. Volkswagen were the ones who wrote and submitted the "Settlement" and everyone just signed off on it without any negotiations or thought on how it would affect original owners. I personally wrote letters on line to the U.S. DOJ, California DOJ, the Law Firm that represented me expressing my disappointment. We should get a full refund of the purchase price!! If you haven't read the article in Road & Track that discussed this exact thing, then you should. The author of that article said the owners were getting screwed, just as I pointed out.

Had you known that this car would not meet emissions standards, get far less MPG and far less power, would you have purchased it? I wouldn't have. They are getting away with this because some people see the quick cash by keeping their car, even though they really haven't given much thought of what the "fix" will do to their car. If VW can not come up with a "fix" then they will have to sell their cars back and have have less money to buy than they should to buy another car. All you owners should FIGHT for your Victim's Rights and not let big corporations get away with this.

Im sure VW would be happy to give you the extra $7,000 if you give them back the wear & tear of the vehicle.

FVWVWF said:

Im sure VW would be happy to give you the extra $7,000 if you give them back the wear & tear of the vehicle.

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I find this amazing.....got to drive the car for 3 years.....and want new value!

At the cost of bumping an inflammatory post, I have to disagree. I got to drive my 2012 JSW for five years, put nearly 60k miles on it, and they're going to give me nearly $22k for it. That's an insane deal and despite how much I like the car, I'm selling mine back because it will never be worth this much again.

To the OP, you don't have to sell. Just let VW fix your car and accept the ~$6k check for your troubles. What's wrong with that?

There is nothing stopping you from keeping the car.

If you were happy with it prior to dieselgate, you can keep the car and not do anything. Or you can elect the fix, if there is one available. The restitution amount accompanying the fix will cover you for any loss in value of the car from its book value prior to dieselgate.

This was a DEAL for all the LAW FIRMS.... they got rich and the owners got the end of the stick or the shaft!

In some ways you are right, but it's more that they are making us gamble by continuing to drive our cars. I feel for families that can't really afford to make a purchase before the buyback starts or can't afford multiple cars.

I didn't actually lose much from my original purchase price (a bit over 10%). I don't see this as quick cash, especially since it's not quick at all!! It's slow as hell if you ask me. I do think there could be ways to handle the mileage issues in a way that better benefits the owners (because after all, we are technically the "victims"). Like having us register our mileage at the dealership now to set the price or using dealership service receipts for those of us who chose to faithfully use their service centers (and yes, I submitted these comments).

That said, when I see the threads here with owners talking about trashing their cars before turning them in? Then I totally understand the need for mileage and operation clauses. They want to salvage parts to recoup losses after the fact? That's fine with me and understandable. But to reuse those parts they need to know how worn they are and that is where mileage comes in. Also, I don't feel the need for any revenge against VW. If anything I'm disappointed that there are no TDI's to choose from as a replacement.

Or, the OP can opt out of the class before 9/16 (I think that's the date; since I don't care I'm not going to look it up) and pursue his own case against VW.

OP, your example kills the story. A fake painting is essentially worthless, your car gave you value and you get a large chunk of the original price back.

He has a case, and a class could form on this standard. I'm just a little surprised someone with a 2013 would reject $26,000?

What he should have done was wait, bought the 2013 in 2015 used for maybe $18k-20k, and then quietly profited at the game of "Settlement Sweepstakes". But no, he was dumb enough to buy the oil painting directly from the forger, and deserves to do worse. //Sarc

Bravo, lawyers.

BuyMeBackSoon said:

OP, your example kills the story. A fake painting is essentially worthless, your car gave you value and you get a large chunk of the original price back.

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What if you bought a fake iPhone, but the phone worked and interacted seamlessly with iTunes? Would the person who sold you that have committed fraud? Would they owe you all your money back? Just playing devil's advocate.

tomo366 said:

I find this amazing.....got to drive the car for 3 years.....and want new value!

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Nice to see another old-timer.

(I'm not commenting on the OP)

Missme said:

What if you bought a fake iPhone, but the phone worked and interacted seamlessly with iTunes? Would the person who sold you that have committed fraud? Would they owe you all your money back? Just playing devil's advocate.

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For that example? Yes... definitely.

I don't understand some of these posters feel that buyback is the only option

swampyankee said:

I don't understand some of these posters feel that buyback is the only option

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Just because someone is saying here that they are going with the buyback doesn't mean they think it's their only option. We have known this is coming for a long time and people have had plenty of time to weigh their options and make a decision. You want everyone to explain every minute detail of their life to you so you can approve their choice in this?

Just because someone is saying here that they are going with the buyback doesn't mean they think it's their only option. We have known this is coming for a long time and people have had plenty of time to weigh their options and make a decision. You want everyone to explain every minute detail of their life to you so you can approve their choice in this?

No I don't need to approve. I just don't understand how much wrapped around the axle people seem. The OP appears to think there is only a buyback option. There is nothing stopping him from taking the fix, or just doing nothing.

My interpretation of the OP's thread is..... "I should get full purchase price..... period"

StinkBugAl said:

All you owners should FIGHT for your Victim's Rights and not let big corporations get away with this.

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You absolutely should. Hire a lawyer at $450 an hour to take on VW because the nearly $30k you're being offered for your 3 year old beetle is equivalent to larceny.

He seems to also have bought his car for supposed emission issues and I think most of us bought them for great MPG, fun drive, diesel engine longevity, etc. The people who bought them for their "clean" aspect seem to be the most angry.

"A perfect example would be if I sold you an original oil painting for $33K and three years later you found out it was a fake."

The proper analogy would be that you bought a painting for $33K. Later it transpired part of it was fake. So the original painter fixed it so that it wasn't fake any more, gave you $10,000 for your trouble, and gave you a 5 year warranty on the painting.

Nothing has been FINALIZED yet.

AmandaSch said:

Nothing has been FINALIZED yet.

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which is a good reminder that you've got until 9/16/2016 to get your complaints in

The thing that bothers me the most is 99.5% of the Complainers joined TDICLUB between Sept 15 and Now......one and only one reason for joining the TDI Club!! very sad to me....

Missme said:

He seems to also have bought his car for supposed emission issues and I think most of us bought them for great MPG, fun drive, diesel engine longevity, etc. The people who bought them for their "clean" aspect seem to be the most angry.

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True...I wonder what the TRUE number of such individuals is though.

Im just thinking...and its just me.....
If I was to go out there and shop for a the most environmentally good car...Id have a chart with me, compare and crunch some numbers, ensure that my environmentally conscious mind trumps mpgs, power, luxury and other aspects of the car...because, really I am shopping for a clean car.
But the reality is...is that nobody or I should say, anyone who's not a nature freak living off the grid really cared about the emissions when buying the car.

It most likely went along the lines of:
"Great MPG????", "torque???", "this cheap??" - I'll take it...screw it, I'll take two!!!!!

There are so many things wrong with this post I'm not sure where to start.

StinkBugAl said:

All us original owners really got the shaft on this "Settlement" deal. If you had a lease, you were made whole, because your lease was forgiven and you got a cash restitution amount. I bought my 2013 Beetle Convertible TDI cash for over $33,000 and my settlement amount is a little over $26,000, meaning I now have $7,000 less in my pocket to buy a new car than I did in 2013.

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You are whining about only getting $26,000 for your vehicle you drove for 3 years? The NADA says retail, not trade-in, retail for your 2013 Beetle TDI is $16,600. And before you say that's extra depreciation due to emmisions issues, the 2.5 was listed at only $17,000 and the 2.o turbo was $19,000. Your getting $26,000! And no, those with a lease were not made whole. They will receive less compensation than an owner when they turn in their car. They don't get their lease payments refunded.

StinkBugAl said:

I am a retired cop so I'm very familiar with Criminal Law. In California, what VW did was a violation of Section 487 of the Calif. Penal Code, Grand Theft, which is Felony and punishable by imprisonment in the State Prison.

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A retired cop who claims to claims to be "very familiar with criminal law". What a shocker. Here's some education...Grand theft is "intentional and unlawful taking of property". VW did not steal from you. It was fraud. Everyone called it fraud. Even the Road and Track article you like to quote calls it fraud. Although in your case it appears VW may have stolen your spirit and ability to think clearly and count your blessings.

StinkBugAl said:

In this case, it is a Federal offense since it crossed state borders.

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VW is based in Europe.

StinkBugAl said:

A perfect example would be if I sold you an original oil painting for $33K and three years later you found out it was a fake. I would have been arrested, sentenced to jail time and the Judge would order me to pay restitution to you for the full amount, not some discounted number because the painting was used.

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That's a terrrible example. Valuable oil paintings don't depreciate.

StinkBugAl said:

We should get a full refund of the purchase price!! If you haven't read the article in Road & Track that discussed this exact thing, then you should. The author of that article said the owners were getting screwed, just as I pointed out.

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As others have said, there is no free lunch. You drove a car for three years. You don't get that for free.

StinkBugAl said:

Had you known that this car would not meet emissions standards, get far less MPG and far less power, would you have purchased it? I wouldn't have.

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You can't have it both ways. It's either not meeting emissions standards OR get less MPG and power, not and.
Are you taking your medication?

grawk said:

You absolutely should. Hire a lawyer at $450 an hour to take on VW because the nearly $30k you're being offered for your 3 year old beetle is equivalent to larceny.

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Exactly.

Jicafold said:

There are so many things wrong with this post I'm not sure where to start.

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I couldn't have said it better myself.

Thanks for setting the record straight.

33,000 Dollars?

Wow, the most amazing part of this thread to me is that someone actually paid 33,000 freakin dollars for a Beetle.

Send objection letters now!!!

Hey there, just got my legal packet today! Ugh! I want to urge all Diesel owners to file an objection letter regarding the mileage adjustment!!!
We all purchased the diesel for the great mileage, most of us driving far more than the allowed 12,500 miles per year. Do the math; if you drive 25 miles one way to work then that is 13,000 miles per year alone, not including your leisure travel. Taking the diesel on a 1000 mile trek for a fuel cost $60 bucks or less.
They advertised these models for those of us who drive! See page 22, section 57 for how to file an objection. Get online and find a sample template for filing a response that they will pay attention to.

Let you voice be heard and then maybe we can convince the courts to be fair. We paid a premium for these vehicles and we all drove them as we had planned. We bought them for the fuel savings and the 40+ mpg advertised.
I urge you to write an objection right away!! Objections must be filed by Sept. 16th....
I'm going to be sending mine tomorrow! Join me!

I drive 40k miles a year, and still think the buyback is a great deal. And if I didn't think it was worth it, I'd get the fix and the $6000.

650Ninja said:

Hey there, just got my legal packet today! Ugh! I want to urge all Diesel owners to file an objection letter regarding the mileage adjustment!!!
We all purchased the diesel for the great mileage, most of us driving far more than the allowed 12,500 miles per year. Do the math; if you drive 25 miles one way to work then that is 13,000 miles per year alone, not including your leisure travel. Taking the diesel on a 1000 mile trek for a fuel cost $60 bucks or less.

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It's not VW's fault you live 25 miles from work. The basis of the scandal is about emissions, not MPG. Move closer, get a bike, and get off your butt, then imagine how much fuel you would save. . And you should be thankful it cost $60 or less to drive 1000 miles. What a bunch of whiners.