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'Directors Say Volkswagen Delayed Informing Them of Trickery' Article from the NYT dated Oct 23rd:
"At least three members of Volkswagen’s board said they were left in the dark about the company’s emissions cheating for two weeks after top executives admitted the deception to American environmental officials...If Mr. Winterkorn did not know about the communication with the American regulators, he was unaware of a fundamental threat to the company. If he was aware, he withheld significant information from members of his 20-member supervisory board...It was a 'grave mistake' for Volkswagen executives to withhold information as long as they did, Mr. Weil said on Friday in a statement. He noted that American regulators had raised red flags about Volkswagen emissions in 2014. 'Talks took place for a full year before Volkswagen admitted the deception,' Mr. Weil said. 'This confession should clearly have occurred much earlier'...Some outsiders expressed surprise that Mr. Winterkorn, known for his attention to detail, would have been unaware that E.P.A. officials had been asking for more than a year why Volkswagen diesel cars had far lower emissions in laboratory tests than on the road. 'I find it very improbable,' said Ferdinand Dudenhöffer, a professor at the University of Duisburg-Essen who follows Volkswagen closely. 'He was always the one who wanted to know everything'.
Volkswagen initially contested findings by independent researchers and the E.P.A. in 2014 that showed big discrepancies between the pollutants that its cars generated on the road compared to lab tests. Then, on Aug. 21, 2015, at a conference in Pacific Grove, Calif., organized by the University of California, Davis, a Volkswagen official informally mentioned to a senior E.P.A. official that the company had been deceiving regulators. The revelation surprised the official, Christopher Grundler, who runs the agency’s Office of Transportation and Air Quality. Standing next to him at the time was a regulator with the California Air Resources Board, according to an E.P.A. official who confirmed the events, earlier reported by Reuters. In a Sept. 3 conference call with officials from the E.P.A. and the state of California, company executives detailed how Volkswagen vehicles were programmed to trick emissions-testing equipment. An E.P.A. spokeswoman declined to identify the Volkswagen officials who have been in talks with the agency."
Comment: In the history of modern management I doubt that that there is a similar instance where a corporate 'official' has admitted to government officials that his company was willingly deceiving regulators in this manner without the presence of legal counsel..unless he was a whistleblower. If he is not the latter, he must be the most naive and 'stupid' individual that has ever worked for a corporation in such a capacity and there will be a special 'dark' place in the annals of corporate business history for this 'dumb ***'. In fact this case might require, from now on, any government official that hears such a 'confession' to read to the corporate employee that is babbling away his 'Miranda' rights and alert him/her that they has a right to remain silent & in the presence of legal counsel before he /she continues to 'talk' & make such self-incriminating admissions.
The only sensible solution once VW realized the 'defeat device' deception could no longer be contained, or explained away, was to let their legal department & governmental affairs personnel handle the sensitive negotiations leading to their admission (at last resort) of some sort of 'wrong doing'. And negotiate a 'plea bargain' deal from the 'prosecutors'. The least intelligent and totally reckless behavior was to admit to both the EPA and CARB the 'fraud' in an informal at some 'academic' function involving a California university.
If corporations could be run like a military organization, this VW official would merit the firing squad...for sheer stupidity. Unless he is a disgruntled employee & whistleblower. Inquiring minds want to know more about who this VW official was...
****
'VW suspends key exec in emissions rigging scandal, reports say
Winterkorn said to be in clear over diesel engine cheat' From Article on Automotive News on Oct 25th:
Comment: It's too early in the investigation to 'clear' Winterkorn. You will see what I mean as the investigation continues & grows.
****
'German Minister Heads to U.S. for Talks on Volkswagen Scandal /
Meetings with U.S. counterpart and EPA officials as worries over fallout to economy rise' Artilce in the WSJ dated Oct 23rd
Comment: Another visible & tangible proof that the German Government will not abandon VW to its 'fate' in the hands of US government & other foreign regulators. Angela Merkel's appearance with Matthias Mueller is not without significance. See WSJ article above re: increasing German government involvement in the 'problem' with US authorities!
****
'Financial Times Reports EU was Warned About Vehicle Emissions Rigging in 2013' Article in Industry Week about a FT report dated Oct 25th:
'The European Union's top environmental official warned his colleagues that automakers were rigging European emissions tests in 2013, long before the scam was uncovered last month, the Financial Times reported on Sunday...Top EU regulators were aware of test manipulation two years ago, but allowed regulatory loopholes to remain, according to the FT, which cited an exchange of letters between officials. 'There are widespread concerns that performance has been tailored tightly to compliance with the test cycle in disregard of the dramatic increase in emissions outside that narrow scope,' EU environment commissioner Janez Potocnik wrote to industrial policy commissioner Antonio Tajani in February 2013, according to the newspaper.'
Comment: Other European auto manufacturers making diesel-engined models might have been doing the same thing as VW to 'rig' their diesel emissions too. The task now is how that information will surface in the press and the implications for the other auto manufacturers with regulators here & abroad.
****
Finally, did you ever wondered how rigorous was the testing by the West Virginia University on diesel emissions, who was included in their investigation and the reason why they were chosen? If so, read this little gem of a story:
'Volkswagen emissions scandal was uncovered because boffins couldn't afford posh cars' Article on The Mail dated Oct 19th:
''The Volkswagen emissions scandal was uncovered only because researchers could not afford to test more expensive cars, The Mail on Sunday can reveal. The American engineers who discovered that Volkswagen used a ‘cheat device’ to pass emissions tests said they originally wanted to test Mercedes and BMW vehicles, but the cars were too pricey to rent. Instead, they used a VW Passat and a VW Jetta saloon – without knowing the cars were fitted with the device to help them pass emissions standards. A BMW X5 sport utility vehicle was also used. The testers spent a month driving the three cars around California with specialist monitoring equipment. The results showed the two VW models would pump out as much as 40 times the allowed levels of nitrogen oxide. When this was later corroborated by the US Environmental Protection Agency and California Air Resources Board, it sent the German car firm into near meltdown.
Daniel Carder, who led the testing team from the Centre for Alternative Fuels, Engines and Emissions at West Virginia University, said: ‘We didn’t set out to trap Volkswagen – it was just that we could spend less money on using their cars.’ More than 11 million cars are being recalled worldwide, with 1.2 million of those in the UK. VW, which yesterday said it had been forced to drop the Royal Warrant from its communications in the wake of the scandal, has set aside £4.7 billion to deal with the fallout from the scandal, but analysts at Credit Suisse say it could cost it closer to £56 billion. Meanwhile, a survey found that public trust in the car industry has been badly damaged, with nearly eight in 10 people now saying they expect more manufacturers to be drawn in to the scandal'.
Comment: To survive, VW will have to prove that it was not the only one rigging the emissions on its diesel engines. Slowly it's coming out that other diesel car manufacturers were/are suspect...it's just that VW were the cheapest cars the investigators could afford to purchase for testing. That lid has now been blown on 'diesel gate' ...and everybody & everything claimed that is diesel-related will be suspect & tested. And that is what might save VW in the end...and why the German gov't might have to come to the rescue by telling the US & other regulators that the problem is universal to the European (and perhaps the ROW) diesel industry and they (the regulators) can't make VW an scapegoat (nor a sacrificial lamb) because it could destabilize the entire German & European economic (and thus political) system due to the importance of the auto industry to the EU.
Saludos,
Eduardo
Presently in Seattle
Follow this other thread too: "More Information on the Resignation of Ferdinand Piëch from the VW Supervisory Board!"
I posted this in my other thread, but thought it worth posting here as well.
Received word from Porsche Exclusive that only 22 Spyders were approved for PTS in the U.S. market!!! So if you managed to snag one, count yourself lucky!!!
I count my self pi$$ed and not quite as poor as I would have been.
I was first in-line at my Dealership and had already agreed to a PTS Spyder.
But with no PDK, no Spyder, which was no problem to the Dealership.
Porsche lost a sale from me because my 2013 PTS Boxster is holding up quite fine after 16K miles, 12 Track days and no problems.
No new 981 of any kind for me.-Richard
I just got a GT4 allocation for March build. My SA submitted my order yesterday which includes the LWB seats. I think the Paint to sample box was available, I've sent Melissa at Porsche Exclusives msg to see if its possible. Does the SA have to do something to followup on this for me?
I just got a GT4 allocation for March build. My SA submitted my order yesterday which includes the LWB seats. I think the Paint to sample box was available, I've sent Melissa at Porsche Exclusives msg to see if its possible. Does the SA have to do something to followup on this for me?
Dave,
Sorry to be the guy that breaks it to you, but your order will be more than likely rejected. The LWB stop order is still in affect. Just because the system initially accepts it, doesn't mean Porsche AG will. PTS is also closed.
Dave,
Sorry to be the guy that breaks it to you, but your order will be more than likely rejected. The LWB stop order is still in affect. Just because the system initially accepts it, doesn't mean Porsche AG will. PTS is also closed.
Navanod,
I was prepared for that and it's not a deal breaker for me. I was just on the phone with my SA and he sent me this screen shot. Where would it show if LWB were rejected? It looks like my car is scheduled for Feb prod rather than March.
Navanod,
I was prepared for that and it's not a deal breaker for me. I was just on the phone with my SA and he sent me this screen shot. Where would it show if LWB were rejected? It looks like my car is scheduled for Feb prod rather than March.
My guess is that your GT4 was v200 prior to adding the seats. My guess is you will go back to v100 once Porsche AG sees your order change. There is a delay due to the time difference. There is a huge thread in the GT4 area around this exact topic and a lot of angry people due to the stop order.
My guess is that your GT4 was v200 prior to adding the seats. My guess is you will go back to v100 once Porsche AG sees your order change. There is a delay due to the time difference. There is a huge thread in the GT4 area around this exact topic and a lot of angry people due to the stop order.
Actually the LWB were on the order when 1st submitted and the screen print is the most current status. Does that mean as of now they don't have a problem with my order. I've been following the LWB thread. The seats are a nice to have for me but not a deal breaker, fingers crossed. I'm just happy to have gotten this allocation @MSRP.
Navanod,
You were right. Had a followup conversation with my SA and this is the msg he got back...
As per Porsche”
Unfortunately we do not currently have an update as to when the P11 Full Bucket Seats will be available to order. Porsche is aware of the demand and is working with the seat supplier to maximize the availability.”
Meanwhile, Volkswagen is denying that it used cheat software in its 3.0-liter TDI engines.
“Volkswagen AG wishes to emphasize that no software has been installed in the 3-liter V6
diesel power units to alter emissions characteristics in a forbidden manner,” the automaker
said in a statement released today in response to the EPA’s allegations.
It's about damn time that Volkswagen starts defending itself using the tools available to it via
our legal system! Deny, deny, deny and fight it with an army of lawyers until you reach a legal
settlement with the EPA & the California Air Resources Board (CARB). Go back to what I wrote
in an earlier post about the VW official that admitted to the EPA & CARB that they were cheating.
Who in his right mind would do that? Was this the work of a disgruntled employee? Or someone
trying to tank the value of the stock & profit from it?
This VW official in question should be put before a firing squad & shot. If nothing else for terminal
stupidity & wanton disregard for the rules of the game. In the annals of modern business history,
this 'VW Scandal' episode will be one taught at all MBA schools as a case study for the next one
hundred years. And the lessors learned from this case at the Wharton & Harvard Business School
is not how well VW handled this affair, but rather what NOT TO DO if you or your company ever
finds itself in the same tough bind as VW did over 'Dieselgate'!
umm back to the seats...I hope/think Porsche will work something out with the supplier so that we can all have LWBs. It's not a deal breaker for me, but I wanted something in the interior that separated the Spyder from the GTS, other than the logo.
I was talking with my salesman yesterday about the build on my new CGTS and in passing he mentioned that another customer awaiting his GT4 was hoping for the LWB's and Porsche confirmed to him(salesman) that they would NOT be forthcoming for the rest of the 2016 model year. For whatever reason (supplier related I'm assuming) they are officially unobtainable. A shame.
Re: PTS Approved List - Now Confidential & For Internal Use Only
I just posted this on the PTS Reference thread at the 991 gt3 forum,
and I think it's worth re-posting here for all of you to read & know
what is going on:
*** Let me respond using comments in 'RED':
Originally Posted by Less than3mph
Eduardo, I just noticed your post in the GT4 forum.
IMO this is a pretty big deal, no? Why would Porsche want to withhold this information on PTS approved
colours from its customers? PTS has grown immensely popular precisely because we are now able to identify
colours that appeal to us while bypassing the usual months long approval process. And this is absolutely
critical for buyers of GT cars, where interest in PTS has probably peaked the fastest, and where the window
of opportunity is fleeting.
Yes, it's unfortunate. And could signified a decidedly turn in direction for PTS at Porsche. It's a warning
aimed squarely at what we are trying to do here at Rennlist with an information campaigned that started
back in July of 2012. Here is what I set to do and announced it on my first post of each thread:
"This thread's purpose is to shed some light into the sometimes opaque world of 'Porsche Exclusive'.
And to disseminate some of information I have gained from past Porsche ordering experiences and
current research into custom ordering a 991...I hope this thread lifts the veil on some of the custom
ordering process at Porsche and helps some of you achieve the perfect 991 spec! I am not affiliated
with PAG, PCNA or any dealer, so all of this is being done is the spirit of 'Liebe Zu Ihm'."
And these threads have grown in interest beyond belief. For example, the 'custom ordering' thread
on the 991 forum has now over 279K views:
*
The one at the 981 forum has over 89K views:
*
This one, which is not even a 'Sticky', has over 110K views!
* And what these figures don't show are the nearly 1700 private messages and countless emails I have
received & answered regarding PTS & 'Porsche Exclusive' options via Rennlist!
So it's hard to make the case that we have not moved the needle on PTS! We have made a big impact.
There has been a decisive movement/shift in orders for Paint to Sample since we started explaining to
the Porsche enthusiast community how Paint to Sample works and emphasize/highlight the beautiful,
out-of-the-ordinary colors available to them via this option on their custom Porsches.
Any idea on the motivation behind this policy? When was this change conveyed to you?
It was conveyed to me via verbal & emails reports I got back from Porsche customers in Europe this
last summer. It was confirmed when I received the last approved PTS list dated July 2015 with the
large print 'For Internal Use Only - Confidential' in early September.
I'm a little surprised that you haven't reported more widely on this turn of events and also that you're
not actively circumventing efforts to suppress this information. Or maybe I just missed that whole
conversation.
No, I have not drawn attention to it in any big way because I am trying to convince PAG, privately via
my direct contacts at PCNA & PAG, to reverse that policy which categorized the PTS list as 'Confidential'.
That decision, in my opinion, is counter-productive. The interest in PTS is real & substantial. PAG can
quantify the numbers of customers that have asked for PTS in MY2012, MY2013, MY2014, MY2015 and
MY2016...and they can see the handwriting on the wall! It's up, up & up. And they also know they have
denied a good portion of these requests due to logistical & physical limitations in the number of PTS they
are prepared to do each year. So no only they are missing on the opportunity to cash in on PTS to its full
potential, but PAG's inability to meet PTS demand is also creating frustration & resentment among their
most enthusiastic & ready-to-spend money affluent customers! That, in the long run, is not a recipe for
success. And I am quietly trying them to reverse course.
Please let us know what you think this means for the future of how PTS will operate.
Not good if they stubbornly stick to their guns and keep the approved PTS list confidential from now on.
Because the PTS window is currently closed for what is left of MY2016 (or so it appears unless they allow
it on these recent last-minute gt4 & RS allocations), I thought I had a bit of time to fight the battle in
private with PCNA & PAG. But the PTS window on MY2017 will open shortly. And if we follow PAG's
directives as they stand today, we will not be privy to future PTS approved list information unless folks
in the know violate PAG's wishes. Given the role I have chosen to take as a conduit for information on
PTS & 'Porsche Exclusive', that has indeed put me on a difficult spot.
Thanks again for all your help with PTS, and I'm hoping you can break through to PAG on behalf of
those of us who really appreciate the incredible option that PTS is. And here's hoping you are able
to do what you've always attempted to do--that is, keep the lines of communication between us
and them open and transparent.
Thank you Daniel for the well wishes. I'll need them. I have communicated to the appropriate executives
at Porsche in the US and Germany my desire for more, not less, transparency of information on how PTS
works at PAG. And I think those feelings mirror the views of Rennlisters I know here. Hopefully, Porsche
will let me know soon how PAG wants to handle PTS going forward. It will be either with optimism & a
commitment to devote more resources to try to satisfy their client's basic PTS demands. Or they will try
to go backwards, to how PTS was run previously in the 996 & 997 era, with opaqueness, smoke, mirrors
& veils !
Let's hope they choose the former...but ultimately it's their company & they will run it as they see fit.
Well, that is unfortunate.
I hope you succeed in changing their minds Eduardo. With numbers going up, they should be capitalizing on PTS (within their capabilities ) rather than shielding it. Surely there has to be a way to manage the system better
10-26-2015, 04:17 AM
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