Featured VW shows German government can't be trusted (Marketwatch)

Well there's certainly enough angst over there in many issues for some finger-pointing and name-calling to go on. If the German government comes on strong (assuming they're not involved in any way), that would put a muzzle on such thinking. Hard to regain the high ground when you're swirling down the gutter.

 

VW isn't going to cause the fall of Europe. That honor goes to everyone who loaned money to those who they knew couldn't repay it.

 

Will it cause people to question a widely held belief in German engineering superiority causing a slowdown or reduction in orders thus reducing Germany's economic clout?

Will any slowdown affect many VW suppliers?

Will a slowdown ripple through the German economy?

Will a slowdown in Germany affect the rest of the EU?

It has certainly hurt VW in a multi-billion dollar way.

 

what government can be trusted?

 

When exactly did this start? Most of my driving life VW, BMW, and Mercedes weren't exactly beacons of reliability.

 

german engineering superiority and unreliability can exist as co equals. and we can now add we can now add dishonesty as the third leg of the stool. but that doesn't negate the engineering prowess and ingenuity it took to come up with and implement this little scheme.

 

The german automakers have taken great strides to improve reliability. They are much better than 15 years ago. A lot of the improvement with BMW and Mercedes came about from pressure from Lexus.

We should separate out Volkswagen here.
Volkswagen Cars, Ratings and Reviews | J.D. Power
Why Americans Aren't Buying Volkswagens - Business Insider

We should say VW has improved reliability, but initial quality and dependability are not up to the competition. Honesty, well I don't expect it from the major automakers, but GM and VW lead in how big the lies have been.

 

I remember back when my father had an MG 1100, his comment that it would be great to have a front-wheel drive car with Volkswagen reliability. That was back when VW had air cooled engines in the back. VW didn't seem to do too well in the transition to water cooled front wheel drive. But it looks like my father's wish came true but under the triple overlapping ovals.

 

there's a great article link here somewhere, posted by sergiospl i think, written by a former vw copywriter. he details how vw was forced into the water cooled engine business with the golf, designed by audi, in the 70's. it's funny, scary and ironic at the same time.

 

I would imagine one of the reasons for the demise of air-cooled engines in cars was emissions. The temperature range was all over the place.