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I'm no automotive engineer, but my understanding is that it's all intertwined. Fuel economy and performance are pretty obviously inversely related (think of a sports car vs. a Prius), but emissions, reliability, and other factors get mixed in as well. Initially (over a decade ago), VW engineers...

FWIW, when I bought my 2017 Chevy Volt, the salesperson said they'd been seeing a lot of VW diesel owners come in looking at the Volt as a potential replacement. Maybe that was just salesperson baloney, but if any automaker is not looking at the VW debacle as a way to pick up sales, they're...

My understanding is that US dieselgate vehicles can be shipped to other countries if and only if they are first fixed (or possibly disabled; I'd want to review the wording on that option). It's entirely plausible that VW would want to ship some of them to Mexico after repairing them, if they...

FWIW, here's a YouTube video that explains the Volt Gen2 drivetrain: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o3-wGOyT2-I Also, in terms of efficiency, the bottom line is always fuel economy. The EPA rating for the Volt is 42 MPG combined on gas alone. (IIRC, it's 41 highway and 42 city or something...

To replace my 2015 Golf TDI, I test-drove three cars a few weeks ago (in the order in which I drove them): 2016 Ford C-Max hybrid -- This was the most practical car. I was impressed by its visibility, seat comfort, and cargo area. I also liked the way it handled. Unfortunately, it's behind...

Peruse the DriverGear site. They've got lots of miscellaneous stuff -- clothing, laptop bags, flashlights, bicycles, first-aid kits, etc. Chances are you can find something you want there. I did this on Friday, put everything I wanted in the online "shopping cart," printed it out, and took it to...

FWIW, the die's already cast for me -- I picked up a new 2017 Chevrolet Volt a few weeks ago. I bought early because Rhode Island (where I live) has an incentive program offering a rebate on new electric vehicles, good for $2,500 on a Volt, and the program was running out of funds. I discovered...

There have been various studies of this. Results vary a bit because of differing assumptions, methodologies, etc., but as a general rule, electric vehicles produce moderately less CO2 than gas-powered cars of similar size over their lifetimes (manufacture to disposal). IIRC, diesels are a bit...

I went to DriverGear, found a bunch of miscellaneous overpriced things to buy, printed a copy of the online "shopping cart," and took it to my local VW dealer today. Apparently they do semi-regular orders of stuff from DriverGear, so they'll add mine to the order and I'll pick it up when it...

Except that without a fix, that would then leave them with half a million cars that they'd have to crush (or at best, disable and sell to junk shops). With a fix, they'll have half a million cars they can fix and then sell. So long as the fix costs less than the sales price of the used-and-fixed...

No, you misunderstood or were mixing together posts from multiple people. I currently own a 2015 Golf TDI, which I purchased new. I submitted scans of my registration and driver's license. (The introductory text mentions the title, but the site didn't ask for that, presumably because they...

I got a Volt, too.... I wouldn't have bought so soon except that I live in Rhode Island, and there's a state rebate program (DRIVE) for electric vehicles that's just about out of funds. I didn't want to miss out on that $2500 rebate, so I got the new car a little early....

FWIW, I had troubles with my normal computer -- I got a "400" error; however, I was able to fill out the questions and upload my document scans from another computer. The site didn't like TIFFs, but it accepted PDFs.

Yes, there are genetic components at work. That doesn't mean that pollution should not be controlled. Your implication that an attempt to limit pollutants should lead to an elimination of power plants and all transportation is an example of...

Yes, pollution kills. Pollution from sources other than VW's diesels kills. Have I complained about that in the past? Yes, I have (although not on this forum). I'm one of these nut-jobs who likes to be able to breathe! I was born in 1965, and I well remember smog days in the 1970s, when my...

Not the I-want-money-without-fixing-my-car claim again?!?! It's quite explicit in the proposed settlement. Read it!

If diesels were exempt from environmental laws, then there'd be a huge uptick in interest in diesels, since manufacturers could produce them more cheaply without the costly emissions equipment. Soon thereafter, the environmental impact would be far from nil. That's basically the situation in...

Not at all. That's the way the current proposal is written; you have three choices: Accept the buyback. Accept the fix and associated cash (if/when it becomes available). Do nothing to the car and get no cash. (There is the possibility of suing VW yourself or as part of some other class...

Of course. My own reasons for favoring the buyback have mostly to do with VW's crimes, but there's also the fact that I'm driving less than I did two years ago. Emissions scandal aside, a diesel is still a decent technology for me, but less so than two years ago, and probably less so in another...

As somebody who bought a 2015 Golf TDI and who's now planning to ditch it for something else, I think I can comment on this: I was open to considering diesel technology, but I was never in love with it. In fact, it's got a lot of problems -- the fuel clings to pumps and my hand stinks all day...