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Volkswagen has a number of firsts for its 2009 Jetta TDI. It is the first new diesel powered passenger car on the market in the U.S. to qualify for sales in all 50 states under the Tier 2 Bin 5 (T2B5) emissions standard. And now it's also the first diesel car to qualify for a federal income tax credit under the Advanced Lean Burn Technology Motor Vehicle income tax credit program. The Internal Revenue Service has certified that the 2009 Jetta TDI qualifies for a one-time tax credit of $1,300. That is the same amount that buyers of General Motors...

German carmaker Volkswagen (VW) has chosen to locate its new US car plant in Tennessee, a move that could pump $1bn (£498m) into the local economy. VW opted for a site in the city of Chattanooga in preference to possible locations in Alabama and Michigan. The euro's rise against the dollar has made it costly to make cars in Europe and export them to the US, leading VW to explore manufacturing again there. The move is good news for a US car industry shedding thousands of jobs. New car Earlier on Tuesday, GM said it planned to make further cutbacks...

Volkswagen announced this morning that it would build a manufacturing plant in Chattanooga, Tenn. where it will build a vehicle specifically for the North American market. The plant will employ 2,000 workers from the tri-state area and is expected to invest $1 billion in the local economy. The plant is an integral part of Volkswagen's plan for expansion in the N.A. market, with sales expected to crest 800,000 units by 2018. The 1,350-acre site will produce 150,000 vehicles annually – specifically a midsize sedan – in 2011.

FRANKFURT (Reuters) - The U.S. State of Alabama will be the likely home of a new Volkswagen (VOWG.DE: Quote, Profile, Research) manufacturing plant, beating two other states, German industry newsletter Automobilwoche said on Saturday, citing senior company sources. A VW spokesman said that a decision on the location of the plant had yet to be taken and that Alabama, Tennessee and Michigan remained in the running. A decision is expected by July 21, the spokesman said. Daimler's (DAIGn.DE: Quote, Profile, Research) Mercedes Car Group has had a manufacturing plant in Alabama for years and ThyssenKrupp (TKAG.DE: Quote, Profile, Research), an...

At the International Vienna Motor Symposium, which starts today, Volkswagen is announcing that its next-generation turbo diesel engine, BlueTDI - developed especially for the North American market - will initially be available in the U.S. version of the Jetta. The Jetta BlueTDI will come to North America sometime in the middle of this year, followed at some point by the Touareg BlueTDI. BlueTDI is the cleaner version of the already pretty clean TDI engine that VW uses in its European diesels (starting with the Tiguan last year). TDI meets the Euro-5 standard and BlueTDI is ready for the stricter...

Tim Dutrow transforming used vegetable oil into cost-effective fuel. SANTA ROSA BEACH — Tim Dutrow brews biodiesel for his Volkswagen in his back yard. Dutrow, 44, got interested in alternative fuels a few years ago as a way to help the environment, but mainly to keep money out of the pockets of Middle East nations. “I save some money, quite a bit, but that’s not why I do this,” he said. “We are in bed with people that don’t care about us. We are really over a barrel with them.” Dutrow went to several workshops in 2006 and surfed the...

Volkswagen Up! Concept Wolfsburg, September 2007. There are cars that endure for all times. They are icons of their type, masterpieces of craftsmanship and technology; they put ideas into motion, make progress tangible and sometimes quite simply make everyday life better, more practical and enjoyable. Many of these cars carry the VW logo. “Bug, Beetle, New Beetle”, “T1, Bulli, Samba bus, California”, “Golf, GTI”. Now Volkswagen is presenting – as a world premiere at the International Motor Show (IAA) in Frankfurt – a concept car that once again has the right stuff needed to move more than just one...

I prank, therefore I am Engineering students have pulled some amazing pranks over the years. But UBC's Golden Gate prank may have been the greatest everBy ERIN MILLAR -- Maclean'sAt about 3:40 a.m. on Feb. 5, 2001, a moving van stopped abruptly in the middle of the Golden Gate Bridge. Although it was still dark, witnesses said they saw around a dozen figures emerge and push a large object over the side of the bridge. They then reboarded the van, and sped away into the night. Nothing to see here. Move along. A couple of hours later, as the morning...

LANSING – Governor Jennifer M. Granholm today issued the following statement on Volkswagen’s presence in Michigan: “We are grateful that so many Volkswagen jobs are staying in Michigan. By choosing to continue their automotive and technology related functions here they will be retaining 600 of their employees in Michigan. We look forward to continuing our strong relationship with Volkswagen in the years to come.” Granholm met with Stefan Jacoby, incoming President and CEO of Volkswagen of America last evening. In conversations and a formal letter to the Governor, Jacoby said Michigan is and will remain an important global center for...

Volkswagen Moving to Herndon U.S. Unit to Bring 400 Jobs From Michigan By Zachary A. GoldfarbWashington Post Staff Writer Thursday, September 6, 2007; Page D01 Volkswagen of America plans to announce today that it will move its headquarters to Herndon, as part of a new corporate strategy to for revamping its sagging auto business. The company said it would bring 400 jobs to the region and invest more than $100 million to set up operations in a new office building in Woodland Park near Washington Dulles International Airport.The move is part of a corporate restructuring that would eliminate 400 positions,...

BERLIN:The chief executives of German auto giant Volkswagen and US technology group Apple met in California recently to discuss a joint venture, a VW spokesman confirmed Thursday. He declined to say whether the meeting between VW's Martin Winterkorn and Steve Jobs of Apple was about the launch of an iCar, which German business magazine Capital said would follow in the footsteps of hit Apple products such as the iMac computer, iPod MP3 player and the new iPhone handset. "It is not about a specific car yet -- it is too soon for that," the spokesman said. Capital said the new...

Germany’s Automobilewoche reports that with the change in Volkswagen’s top management is coming a change in strategy for hybrids. Martin Winterkorn, who formerly headed the company’s Audi AG unit, became CEO after Bernd Pischetsrieder resigned at the end of 2006. Pischetsrieder had brought in Wolfgang Bernhard from DaimlerChrysler to run the Volkswagen unit. Berhard has now left (as of today), and Winterkorn will personally oversee the VW brand for the time being. Now, rather than target a mild hybrid Jetta for sale into the California market in 2008 as described by Pischetsrieder, Volkswagen will focus first on a full hybrid...

Wednesday October 25, 2006 By TOM KRISHER AP Business Writer DETROIT (AP) -- From July to September, GM, Ford and Chrysler racked up losses as large as the entire annual gross domestic product of Africa's Malawi. That's $7.5 billion. Despite the massive losses, company officials and some industry analysts say the Big Three can do little more than wait for drastic cost cuts to kick in and new products to take hold before they can staunch the bleeding. All three reported third-quarter losses this week, with General Motors Corp. and DaimlerChrysler AG's Chrysler Group joining the misery Wednesday. A $1.5...

Volkswagen has struck a deal with unions to extend the working week of staff at six German plants without any increase in pay. In return for raising their hours by four hours a week to 33 hours, the 100,000 workers have been guaranteed job security until 2011. The carmaker promised to build the next generation of its flagship Golf model at its main factory in Wolfsburg. The company wants to cut costs for the production of its vehicles. Cars such as the Golf are selling strongly but are bringing in little profit. VW had been seeking a 35-hour week without...

Watch at the link above, and see the very best car for terrorists...the Volkswagen Polo. Once you watch, you'll see what I mean.

It has proved one of the most endearing of cinematic legends - a loveable car with a mind of its own that can drive itself. And for 40 years Herbie - or the 'Love Bug' - as the Volkswagen Beetle was dubbed in its first movie outing - has enthralled millions of families in a series of Hollywood sequels. But now German car giant Volkswagen has turned fiction into reality by unveiling a fully automatic car which really can drive itself - and at speeds of up to 150mph. It can weave with tyres screeching around tricky bends and chicanes,...

Volkswagen says it wants to lengthen its standard working week at plants in western Germany to 35 hours without raising salaries. The move - which would end a 28.8-hour working week in place since 1994 - is designed to improve efficiency. But union leaders oppose the move, which VW sees as key to a comprehensive agreement on pay and conditions. The car firm warned that longer hours might not be sufficient to safeguard future employment. It previously said that 20,000 jobs were at risk unless productivity could be increased. VW needs union approval to see the controversial changes through. The...

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This magazine marked the 20th anniversary of Earth Day in 1990 by exploring “future” technologies. [snip] VOLKSWAGEN JETTA TDI 7.0 gallons of B20 biodiesel at $2.749 49.9 mpg vs. EPA highway rating of 42 mpg Our fuel station was offering up B20 biodiesel, 20 percent veggie oil, which means that from an environmentalist’s perspective the German diesel didn’t just beat the Japanese hybrids, it trounced them. Not only that, it had more than half of its 14.5-gallon tank left at the end—it could have made the same trip again without refueling! Our example was pretty much a stripper, absent even...

Is this VW ad coming to our shores any time soon? Doubt it!

If anyone hasn't seen the hilarious new VW commercials, here are all three of them. Admin mods, please move if I posted it in the wrong place. http://www.leftlanenews.com/2006/02/22/vw-strikes-again-un-pimp-my-ride-videos/

VW Will Start Selling Costly Bugatti in the U.S.; Zero to 62 in 2.5 SecondsAfter seven years of false starts, a $1 million car billed as the world's fastest factory-produced automobile is about to arrive on American shores. Volkswagen AG is launching early next year the Bugatti Veyron, a curvaceous two-seater with air-intake scoops and a large radiator grille that prominently displays the Bugatti badge. For the German car maker, it represents an unusual bet on the high-end market at a time of cost cutting for the company and as U.S. car makers continue to struggle with slow sales. The...

MOSCOW, December 2 (RIA Novosti) - The Volkswagen concern has confirmed its plans to open a car-manufacturing plant in Russia, an investment tentatively estimated at 330 million euros, the Ministry of Industry and Energy said Friday. "The details of the project have not been discussed yet," the ministry said. Volkswagen top managers said the plant would house full-scale production, the ministry said. The ministry said Volkswagen was ready to invest 330 million euros in the plant with a production capacity of 80-150,000 cars per year. The company will be producing the VW Pointer microcar, which sells for up to $10,000.

Stanley, the Volkswagen Touareg that won a $2 million desert road race all on its own — in a sense — bears a logo that plays off its manufacturer’s slogan. “Drivers not required.” The robotic SUV finished first in a 132-mile trek across the rugged and twisting Nevada desert, in what may be an early step toward getting vehicles to do their own driving for everything from war-zone supply missions to morning commutes.

OCT. 9 3:56 P.M. ET A driverless Volkswagen won a $2 million race across the rugged Nevada desert Sunday, beating four other robot-guided vehicles that completed a Pentagon-sponsored contest aimed at making warfare safer for humans. The race displayed major technological leaps since last year's inaugural race, when none of the self-driving vehicles crossed the finish line. Stanley the Volkswagen, designed by Stanford University, zipped through the 132-mile Mojave Desert course in six hours and 53 minutes Saturday, using only its computer brain and sensors to navigate rough and twisting desert and mountain trails.

PRIMM, Nev., Oct. 8 - Fifteen robotic vehicles sprinted through the Nevada desert Saturday afternoon, closing in on a $2 million prize from the Pentagon meant to spur development of technologies for 21st century automated warfare. The vehicles were the survivors from an original starting field of 23 teams fielded by alliances of computer, automotive and aerospace companies, university researchers and others. The competition, called the Grand Challenge, was organized by the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency, or Darpa, and was designed to tap into the talents of a wide range of researchers and innovators who might not otherwise be...

Porsche CEO's VW plan deals blow to minorities Mon Sep 26, 2005 12:31 PM ET By Christiaan Hetzner FRANKFURT (Reuters) - Wendelin Wiedeking, the outspoken chief executive of Germany's legendary sports car maker Porsche (PSHG_p.DE: Quote, Profile, Research), is anything but a devout proponent of shareholder value. But investors holding Porsche non-voting stock never dreamed the otherwise conservative businessman would spend billions to protect the independence of Europe's largest carmaker, Volkswagen (VOWG.DE: Quote, Profile, Research), via a 20 percent stake purchase. Privately controlled but publicly listed Porsche has taken the Frankfurt Stock Exchange operator to court over requirements for index-listed...

GERMANY’S conservative opposition leader, Angela Merkel, is hoping to exploit a lurid sex and bribery scandal at Volkswagen to boost support for her plans to take on the trade unions if she wins a general election in September.Her Christian Democrat Union (CDU) manifesto, to be unveiled tomorrow, will outline measures to weaken the powers of the unions. The party wants to change the law to allow companies that have secured the support of two-thirds of their workforce to bypass union negotiators and deal directly with their employees. Merkel — known as Germany’s Iron Maiden — argues that the unions, which...

Germany is the home to an automobile industry that is admired and respected worldwide. Their products range from low to high end, with almost every manufacturer commanding respect in their target demographics. From the success of introducing the world’s first luxury marque at Mercedes-Benz, to pioneering the mix of luxury-sport at BMW AG, almost all German automobiles are revered. Lately, however, there has been one sore thumb in the almost exclusive group. That would be the long-heralded heritage of home-grown Volkswagen AG. Volkswagen, literally “people’s car,” has been producing vehicles in Germany since its original founder, Adolf Hitler, brainstormed their...

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One year ago, I wrote a piece exposing radical Islam within Florida Atlantic University (FAU). My goal was twofold: [1] to bring awareness concerning a growing problem within FAU [2] to push the university to take action so that this problem ceases to exist. Unfortunately, only the first part of my goal was accomplished, as FAU is continuing to allow radicals on its campus, the latest being this Saturday'S (Jan.22, 2005) return engagement of potential co-conspirator to the 1993 bombing of the World Trade Center, Siraj Wahhaj. The Enemy Thrives at FAU In recent times, a fairly large list of...

Pope's old car smashes eBay records 10:00 PM May 5 Bidding for Pope Benedict XVI's old Volkswagen, on offer on eBay Germany, has topped 100,000 euros (at 9:10pm AEST). That is 10 times the price the current owner paid for it. The page on the Internet auction website has so far registered 6.3 million hits, far more than any other item ever advertised. The bidding for the metallic grey 1999 Golf IV in mint condition started at 9,999 euros. That is the price Benjamin Halbe, 21, bought it for in January from a used car dealer. He had no idea...

Pope's VW breaks eBay records May 02 2005 06:35:09:267PM     VW eyes building 'Pope-mobile'   Old pope sells more than new   Vatican running in the red   Cashing in on pope's image   Berlin - Interest in Pope Benedict XVI's old Volkswagen, currently on offer on eBay Germany, has smashed all records for the Internet auction site with nearly four million hits, the company said on Monday. "It was viewed more often than any other item we have ever had on eBay Germany," the Berlin headquarters said. The bidding for the metallic gray 1999 Golf IV in...

Lansing, MI - The slug bug community is in the midst of the biggest controversy the game has ever seen since the "no slug backs" rule was introduced in 1978. The issue? Whether to include the new Volkswagen Beetles as sluggable cars. Many players see this as an opportunity to introduce a whole new generation of 'Slug-Buggers' to the game, while others contend that the integrity of the game is at stake. Purists of the game have argued since the new Beetle's introduction that the it should not be sluggable. We caught up with Jason Smithers at Slug-Bug-a-rama 2000. He...

check out this VW video using terrorism as a selling point. Its quite funny. I dont recall seeing this elsewhere.

This may take a while to download and play but it is so funny.Runs faster if you saqve it off to your PC and play it ohterwise it may be a little jerky in motion.Terrorist in a VW

Volkswagen filed criminal charges yesterday over a professionally made commercial making rounds on the Internet that features a suicide car-bomber whose attack is stymied when he blows himself up while his VW Polo remains intact. Commercial features suicide car-bomber stymied by 'tough' VW Polo. As WorldNetDaily reported, Volkswagen and its advertising agency DDB London claim the so-called viral ad is unauthorized. Company spokesman Hartwig von Sass said yesterday VW lodged a criminal complaint with prosecutors in Brunswick, Germany, but did not specify a perpetrator, according to Reuters. "This is an attack on Volkswagen's good name," he said of the ad....

VW lodged a criminal complaint with prosecutors in Brunswick, Germany, but did not specify a perpetrator, Company spokesman Hartwig von Sass told Reuters. "This is an attack on Volkswagen's good name," he said of the ad, which he called cynical and criminal. Under German law, it is possible to file charges against persons unknown and prosecutors and police are obliged to try to track down the perpetrators. The VW spokesman told Reuters the complaint was about "all crimes that could be considered in this regard." A report earlier this week on the Website of the British newspaper The Guardian said...

I saw this on "Iraq The Model" and thought y'all might enjoy it too.VW suicide bomber

Volkswagen is at the centre of a global row after a disturbing film featuring a Palestinian suicide bomber in a Polo car flew around the world on the internet. Watch the VW 'suicide bomber' Polo ad Volkswagen said last night it was outraged by the spoof advert, which became the fifth most talked about item on internet weblogs. The mystery deepened after MediaGuardian.co.uk tracked down the makers of the film, who revealed that some distinctively professional techniques had been used: it had been shot on 35mm film, not something an amateur would usually do, and cost £40,000, not a sum...

A provocative video clip released on the Internet showing a suicide bomber behind the wheel of a Volkswagen left viewers wondering if it was a car commercial or a hoax. The spot shows a man who appears to be of Middle Eastern descent getting into a Volkswagen Polo — a smaller version of the Golf that is sold in Europe — and driving down a street in an unidentifiable city. The man, who is wearing a checkered scarf of the same pattern as the keffiyeh headdress late Palestinian president Yasser Arafat wore, stops in front of a restaurant and...

Volkswagen might consider building an auto plant in the USA, the German automaker's chief said Wednesday. But a decision, which could come by the end of the decade, would be contingent on the company's plants in Mexico and Brazil reaching capacity, Chairman Bernd Pischetsrieder said. VW hasn't had a U.S. plant since 1988, when it shuttered its factory in Westmoreland County, Pa. Pischetsrieder, in an interview with USA TODAY at the Los Angeles Auto Show, also revealed that VW is considering whether to import into the USA a car smaller than the compact Jetta. It joins Ford, Mercedes, BMW and...

VW may open U.S. plant Weak dollar, losses in U.S. operations forcing German automaker to look at possible U.S. plant. December 3, 2004: 12:00 PM EST FRANKFURT (Reuters) - Continued depreciation in the dollar is forcing Europe's largest automaker Volkswagen to consider building VW and Audi brand cars in the United States, the company's sales and marketing head said. "We are thinking about manufacturing those models there that for the most part are also sold in the U.S.," Georg Flandorfer told German daily Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung in an interview published on Friday, adding that the planned Audi Q7 sports utility...

DETROIT -- Volkswagen of America Inc. will lose nearly $1.3 billion this year due to the weak dollar and its aging product lineup in the United States, according to Bernd Pischetsrieder, VW AG's chairman. Pischetsrieder disclosed the anticipated loss from the VW's U.S. operation in story published in an Italian newspaper, Il Sole. Steve Keyes, spokesman for VWoA, confirmed the anticipated 2004 financial loss. The number comes from VW CFO Hans Dieter Pötsch, Keyes says. The anticipated loss of $1.3 billion encompasses both the VW and Audi brand sales in North America. That represents a loss of about $2,878 per...

DETROIT (Reuters) - Volkswagen, the company long synonymous with the inexpensive Beetle, on Wednesday put a $94,600 price tag on ultra-luxury versions of its Phaeton sedan in the United States -- making it the highest-priced VW ever. Europe's largest carmaker began selling a 335-horsepower V8 version of the Phaeton last November at a price of $64,600. The 420-horsepower, 12-cylinder model, which VW touts as "the ultimate flagship of the Volkswagen brand," has only recently become available to U.S. car buyers. At a base price of nearly $95,000, the Phaeton W12 is the most expensive VW ever, Volkswagen's U.S. subsidiary acknowledged...

Diesel drought: Emissions law blocks sale of some VWs By MEREDITH GOAD, Portland Press Herald Writer Drivers wanted? In Maine these days, Volkswagen dealers have a new twist on that catchy commercial slogan: Cars wanted. Maine VW dealers won't be able to sell diesel versions of the Golf, Jetta, Passat and Touareg for the next three years because they don't meet California emissions standards. Maine adopted the California standards in 2000, but this is the first time a car has become unavailable for sale here because it was not California-certified. The restriction applies to new cars - those with less...

Drivers wanted? In Maine these days, Volkswagen dealers have a new twist on that catchy commercial slogan: Cars wanted. Maine VW dealers won't be able to sell diesel versions of the Golf, Jetta, Passat and Touareg for the next three years because they don't meet California emissions standards. Maine adopted the California standards in 2000, but this is the first time a car has become unavailable for sale here because it was not California-certified. The restriction applies to new cars - those with less than 7,500 miles on their odometers - that feature the turbo direct injection, or TDI, diesel...

For education and discussion only. Not for commercial use. SHANGHAI, China (AP) -- This communist nation's booming auto industry opened a new era as an exporter of premium-priced cars Friday when Volkswagen unveiled the first sedan made in China for sale to upscale Western drivers. Most foreign automakers setting up operations in China are focusing on a domestic market that is the fastest-growing in the world. For decades, the country has exported low-priced trucks, buses and other vehicles - mostly to developing countries. But so far, the economics of carmaking in the top ranks of the industry have worked against...

The $75,000 People's Car Allison Fass, 10.27.03 Bet you didn't know that VW stands for "very Wealthy." Class-piration VW is ramping up its image and prices. For the starting price of a basic Phaeton, car shoppers could buy 75 Beetles at the 1949 price. 2003 Phaeton $60,000 2003 Touareg $34,900 1998 New Beetle $15,200 1990 Passat $14,770 1980 Jetta $7,650 1955 Karmann Ghia $2,000 1949 Beetle $800 As Volkswagen of America was plotting the launch of its Phaeton luxury sedan 18 months ago, 50 or so people in New York and Los Angeles received dinner party invites from good friends....