Some time ago, on the klipnik.com Facebook page, there was a lively debate about the car that has scratched the reputation of German engineering: the VW Diesel. Robert Mettler Schnorf told the used car community that he had bought a "Jetta SportWagen TDI". Year of construction: 2014. Odometer reading: 173 miles. "It's a great car." Yes, agreed another. "I had two diesel VWs and they were bulletproof."
Four years after "Dieselgate", the discontinued models from the Volkswagen scandal have become hot goods on the American used car market. "You should probably buy a used Volkswagen TDI right now," Klipnik editor Mark Holthoff recently recommended to his readers.
He apparently hit a nerve with it. "What I notice is that it can be difficult to find one," reports the industry expert. Holthoff believes that VW diesel is "one of the best opportunities to buy a used car for years to come". The German company is throwing its scandal-prone models onto the market at a bargain price.
DPA
In fact, VW is quietly working to free itself from the legacy of the scandal. After the fraud was discovered with the exhaust gas software, the company in the USA had to promise to buy back all affected VW, Porsche and Audi. 394,000 customers accepted the offer. The returns were temporarily parked on provisional spaces such as an old football stadium in Detroit or a former paper mill in Minnesota. Almost half of the wagons ended up in the junkyard: a total of 177,000 vehicles were destroyed, according to unofficial information.
The emission software for the rest of the fleet was improved, then VW started to smuggle the goods back into the market. Facebook user Robert Mettler Schnorf got his own statements directly from a storage location in Jacksonville, Florida, where the car had been unused for four years. Schnorf says that it was "as good as new."
"Let the past rest"
DPA
VW dealer in Alexandria, Virginia (archive picture)
So is the cheating of Wolfsburg forgiven and forgotten? The diesel drivers are "a fairly loyal group," believes Klipnik expert Holthoff. At the beginning there was definitely a feeling: "VW cheated and I don't want to belong." On the other hand, the company does not benefit from the buyback program. According to the comparison, VW often put more than the market price on the table for the returns. And according to Holthoff, the prices now called up by the used car dealer are around a third below what would have been asked without the scandal. As a new car, the Jetta Diesel once cost about as much as a comparable GTI - today the diesel is traded for $ 4,000 to $ 5,000 less.
With such a bargain, many buyers are willing to overlook the battered reputation of the German group. "It's amazing how a good deal can change your mind," said Joe Wiesenfelder, chief editor of Cars.com. Meanwhile it says: "Let the past rest." Jessica Caldwell from the Edmunds.com competition portal is also convinced that the memory of consumers is short. "Most of you probably don't mind the scandal anymore."
Attractive price, good car or skilful market control by the VW sales department - which factor is decisive for the small hype is not entirely clear. "We don't exactly know what the natural demand is," admits Wiesenfelder. Every month VW throws around 9000 of the old cars on the market. The warehouse should be empty by summer at the latest.
The final sprint is running - also technically. "Every vehicle we see needs brakes and tires. The brakes are rusty and the tires are porous," a dealer in New Jersey told The New York Times. But that's the VW problem. With his Jetta, the cover on the sunroof fell off soon after the purchase and at some point it rained, wrote Robert Mettler Schnorf. That didn't bother him: "Everything was repaired under guarantee."
