Volkswagen Group issues statement of non-endorsement of proposed MY2017-2025 CAFE program
30 July 2011
Volkswagen Group of America issued a statement by Tony Cervone, Executive Vice President, Communications saying that it does not endorse the CAFE program for model years 2017-2025 announced on Friday by President Obama (earlier post).
The plan as proposed places an unfairly high burden on passenger cars, Volkswagen argues, while allowing special compliance flexibility for heavier light trucks. Passenger cars would be required to achieve 5% annual improvements, and light trucks 3.5% annual improvements. The largest trucks carry almost no burden for the 2017-2020 timeframe, and are granted numerous ways to mathematically meet targets in the outlying years without significant real-world gains.
The proposal encourages manufacturers and customers to shift toward larger, less efficient vehicles, defeating the goal of reduced greenhouse gas emissions. Volkswagen Group clean diesel products are among the most fuel efficient vehicles on the road today. Our new mid-size Passat TDI, built here in the US in Chattanooga, TN, achieves 43 mpg highway and can travel almost 800 miles on a single tank of fuel. If one-third of the vehicles on the road today were clean diesel, the US would save 1.4 million barrels of oil a day. Yet there is no consideration in the current proposal for the positive impact clean diesels can have on fuel consumption here in the US.
We look forward to continuing our discussions with the White House to achieve the “one nation standard” that is fair and equitable.
—Volkswagen Group statement
Shorter VW: "Tax fuel!"
Posted by: Engineer-Poet | 30 July 2011 at 09:57 AM
I think this is more about establishing a level playing field across all sectors before signing up. According to VW large trucks will have an unfair advantage. Something that people have been saying for years.
Posted by: Scott | 31 July 2011 at 02:28 AM
Guess what - the CAFE program places an unfairly high burden on passenger cars, while allowing special compliance flexibility for heavier light trucks because it is the USA CAFE program.
It needed US auto maker buy in for political reasons.
GM was given massive bankruptcy/bailout funds plus still keep the tax credits for "their" losses.
GM and GE pay no taxes.
Ford has weathered the storm without gov’t bailouts and tax relief - good, sorry about the huge boost your competitor got - as a reward for . . . ?
Forget principle.
GM, Ford, Chrysler, Toyota and Honda are signing up.
They see no advantage in standing on principle – CAFÉ can be changed.
Lower pickup truck sales because of the housing industry slowdown and the public's increasing awareness that a $100 tank of gas will never go back to $50 will continue to hurt US auto makers.
You don't have to like big business - but you have to pretend to. Forget principle.
Posted by: ToppaTom | 31 July 2011 at 08:26 AM