2009 Volkswagen Beetle Runs Rebuildable Repairable Wreck Lawaway Plan Bug on 2040-cars

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The VW emissions carnage assessment with an upside

Bombs cause destruction. Even if they're intelligently guided and pinpoint, there's always collateral damage. The strange Volkswagen brew, which is still spontaneously combusting in plain sight, will result in aftershocks for years. And the professional end of the corporation's top leadership will not be the only casualties. Blows are striking shareholder confidence, the residual value of the cars involved, consumer confidence, and the German economy itself. A hard rain's going to fall elsewhere, too. Here are just four damage assessment areas. The High-Compression Past and Low-Compassion Future of Diesels Despite European and especially German manufacturers' high belief that diesel engines were a way to light-duty automotive salvation, VW's scandal started the last nail in the fuel's coffin. Regulations both in the U.S. and in Europe for particulates and nitrogen oxide (NOx) are getting much harder to meet, and this is at the very core of VW's deception. Even with the high-cost exhaust after-treatment systems, sky-high fuel pressure, and sophisticated electronics, the inescapable NOx realities won't be washable by technology in an affordable way. German engineering pride will have to work a real miracle to meet these looming regs and the stain of VW's scandal did the whole diesel movement no favors. Perhaps not so ironically, the E.U. adopted more stringent emission standards this year, which closely mimic the U.S. Tier 2, Bin 5 figures phased in for 2008. Indeed, when VW announced it was able to meet the stringent US NOx emissions standards in 2009 for its diesel engines without urea injection as an exhaust after-treatment, it was a particularly high point of engineering pride for the company. No other manufacturer had figured out how to do so. One Honda official at the time remarked that they had simply no idea how VW was achieving this feat and Honda couldn't come close. Well, neither could VW. On a macro scale, European cities are also starting to face government fines for air quality violations. This is forcing those cities to find various ways to cut smog-related causes like tailpipe emissions. In fact, Paris has gone to the length of restricting car use on a sliding scale when smog persists, while electric cars are free to roam. France's longer and larger plan is banning diesel fuel for light-duty transportation entirely. But why was there a frothy focus by the European manufacturers on diesels in the first place?

2015 VW Golf R ready for your pre-order on January 8

If you want to be the first person on your block with Volkswagen's latest Golf R parked in your garage, you need to clear some time from your schedule on January 8. On that day, VW is opening the pre-order books for the first 500 Stateside examples of the new hot hatch, and they come with some neat accessories, too. Don't worry about specing just the right Golf R because all 500 early models are identical. In addition to the obvious 2.0-liter turbocharged engine with 292 horsepower 280 pound-feet of torque and 4Motion all-wheel drive, the six-speed dual-clutch gearbox is the only option here. Every one of these hot hatches comes in Lapiz Blue Metallic paint with 19-inch wheels covered in summer performance tires. Based around the DCC and Nav trim, each of them also has VW's adaptive damper system, bi-xenon headlights with LED running lights, a Fender audio system, parking sensors and navigation. Beyond just being the first ones to own VW's latest hot hatch in the US, the deal for these 500 folks also includes a Volkswagen R watch, carbon fiber and stainless steel keychain and a certificate. All three items are serialized to match the VIN of the buyer's Golf R. The total price for each one of these 500 Golf R's is $39,090, plus $820 destination and delivery. But potential buyers don't have to come up with all of that on January 8. They just need to visit VW's Golf R site and pay a $500 reservation fee to get in line, which goes toward the purchase of the car. The money is refundable for anyone who backs out, and any additional orders are put on a waiting list in case of any cancelations.

Honda wins Commercial of the Decade, but not for the ad you think [w/VIDEO]

Honda's Commercial of the Decade: "Grrr" - Click above to watch video
The mad men at Adweek recently voted for the Commercial of the Decade (Super Bowl commercials not included) and Honda took top honors over memorable ads from the last ten years by companies like Nike, Budweiser and Sony. That's not a big surprise considering Honda often puts a huge amount of effort into its on-air spots. However, the Japanese automaker didn't win for the commercial you might have expected: "Cog." Though Honda's famous commercial that breaks down a European Accord Tourer into a Rube Goldberg-esque machine was also a finalist, it was beaten by another Honda commercial called "Grrr" that's narrated by Garrison Keillor of all people. You've probably never seen it, but you can after the jump.
Volkswagen also made the list of finalists, but the particular ad chosen out of all the comical VW ads we've seen was unexpected as well. Most surprising carmaker with a commercial in the finals: Saturn. Who knew...