Editor? /? Text? wisecrack
Design? /? Du? triumphant
Source? /? Automatic news, by Larry? p？ Velekott
After five long years, the scars of the biggest and most expensive scandal in the history of the automobile industry finally began to fade.
As a brand, Volkswagen's market share in the United States has recovered to the level before the exposure of its $33.3 billion (RMB 227.2 billion) diesel emission scandal in September 2005. The cars sold by its dealer network once again exceeded the cars repurchased. The last of the 36 large parking lots in the United States, once crowded with thousands of illegal turbodiesel engines, finally emptied and closed the parking lot near Baltimore Harbor in August.
The carmaker will turn over a new leaf and launch the ID4, a pure electric compact crossover, which will be launched in the United States at the end of this year. It is estimated that the cruising range will exceed 300 miles (about 483 kilometers). After deducting tax credits and purchase subsidies, the starting price is only 30,000 US dollars (about 205,000 yuan). This will be the first time that the brand has penetrated into the American electric vehicle market. Previously, Audi and Porsche under the Volkswagen Group have also entered the American electric vehicle market, and these two brands have also been involved in the severe test of this exhaust emission.
99% of Volkswagen's 650 dealers in the United States have signed an agreement to sell Volkswagen ID4 and future planned electric vehicles, which is due to the generous subsidies provided by the factory and the public's strong interest in changing the status quo and winning back customers.
However, it is not only time that heals the wounds of Volkswagen, but also a lot of money to save the American business of this German brand and restore it to a healthier state.
Luciano, Chairman of the National Dealer Advisory Committee of Volkswagen, USA
"Their decision is correct? No. But they made all the right decisions with checkbooks. " Volkswagen National Dealer Advisory Committee (National? Dealer? Consultation? John, chairman of the board of directors and member of the dealers' Committee who helped solve the scandal? Luciano (John? Luciano) said "Sometimes, money can really cure everything, which may be something that must happen."
Initially?
Even for consumers who may only notice this when buying a new car, it is hard to ignore the news that Volkswagen has violated diesel emission regulations.
More than a decade ago, Volkswagen engineers in Germany were ordered to design a cleaner turbodiesel engine to meet stricter new emission standards. At first, they failed.
But instead of accepting this fault, they installed a software to make the engine meet the requirements under the test. However, under normal driving conditions, the nitrogen oxides emitted by the engine are 40 times higher than the allowable amount, which violates the federal Clean Air Act (Clean? Air? Behavior).
It was not until 20 14 that a group of researchers from the University of West Virginia tested a Volkswagen diesel car on the road instead of in the laboratory, and this cheating behavior was discovered by the outside world. Their findings eventually led to the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the California Air Resources Board (California? Air? Resources? Board) attention. Volkswagen actively lied and tried to cover up the cheating, but at a meeting in California on September 3, 20 15, an American executive of Volkswagen revealed this.
The ensuing legal and market vortex will cost the Volkswagen Group billions of dollars in the world, many senior executives will lose their jobs, and some of them will lose their freedom, which will also damage the reputation of other automobile manufacturers and brands, which also cut corners on engines or use cheating software-including Daimler and BMW.
In 20 17, Volkswagen pleaded guilty to three felonies in the U.S. district court in Detroit and was forced to pay billions of dollars in fines and compensation.
Most civil cases against automobile manufacturers have been solved, but some cases are still under trial.
Review of the timetable of the Diesel scandal
2005: Volkswagen engineers began to develop EA 189 diesel engine, and then added software to modify the performance to pass the emission test.
Martin winterkorn, former CEO of Volkswagen
20 14 may: the California air resources board was informed that the emissions of Volkswagen diesel vehicles increased during road driving; It is reported that martin winterkorn, CEO of Volkswagen, has informed this matter.
2065438+September 3, 2005: At the meeting in California, Volkswagen executives told the California Air Resources Board and the US Environmental Protection Agency that Volkswagen has "deactivation device" software.
September, 2065438+05 18: The US Environmental Protection Agency issued "2009-20 15 Volkswagen and Audi 2.0L Turbocharged Diesel Engine Violation, Announcement". Subsequently, an order to stop sales was issued. Five days later, Wendeng resigned.
20 15 1 1.2: The US Environmental Protection Agency issued a notice violating the Clean Air Act, involving Volkswagen, Audi and Porsche cars with 3.0-liter diesel engines of model 20 14-20 16.
2015165438+1October 19: Volkswagen officially informed the us environmental protection agency that since 2009, all 3.0-liter diesel models of the company have installed efficiency reducer software.
October 20 16 65438+ 10: The U.S. Department of Justice filed a civil lawsuit against the public, seeking up to $46 billion in compensation for violating the Clean Air Act.
20 16 10: in the settlement reached with California and federal regulators, Volkswagen agreed to invest 1003 billion dollars in the United States for car repurchase and owner compensation, and another 4.7 billion dollars for emission offset programs and clean car promotion projects.
20 1 6165438+1October1:Volkswagen began to accept and handle the claims of consumers who bought or rented their diesel vehicles.
2065438+0765438+1October: Oliver Schmidt, the senior executive of Volkswagen who is in charge of meeting the US exhaust standards, was arrested by the US authorities in Florida. Volkswagen pleaded guilty to three US felonies and agreed to pay $4.3 billion in civil and criminal fines.
20 18: Wendeng is sued in the United States.
June, 2065438+08 18: Audi CEO Rupert Steader was arrested in Germany.
2065438+September 30, 2008: The deadline for applying for a 20-liter diesel engine in the United States expires. A total of 4,677,065,438+0 claimants received the notice of claim, of which 373,623 sold their vehicles or terminated the lease in advance, and received compensation of $7.83 billion.
2019 April 15: German prosecutors accuse Wendeng of fraud, breach of trust and competition law.
May 30, 2020: Deadline for Claim for 3.0-liter Diesel Engine. A total of 69,465,438+07 eligible claimants received preferential treatment, of which 65,438+06,832 sold their vehicles and received compensation of US$ 684,500,000 or terminated their leases early.
Arrest and punishment
Just last Wednesday, September 9th, a court in Brunswick ruled that Martin winterkorn, former CEO of Volkswagen (VW)? Wendeng) and four other managers must stand trial. They are accused of selling diesel vehicles that pollute the environment in Europe and causing serious commercial fraud.
At the same time, federal records show that Oliver Schmidt (Oliver? Schmidt) will complete a seven-year sentence in Christmas 2022. Schmidt is the highest-ranking executive of Volkswagen who is currently being sued in the United States.
Schmidt, aged 5 1, agreed to be extradited to his native Germany in July this year, where he will serve his sentence. 20 17 1, he was arrested at Miami international airport while trying to return to Germany after a holiday in Florida, and pleaded guilty on 12. He stayed in America waiting to be transferred to Germany.
Another former Volkswagen engineer, 66-year-old James Liang (James? Liang) was also sentenced to prison for participating in the emissions cheating conspiracy. But unlike Schmidt, Liang cooperated with investigators and was released from the federal prison on 20 19 1 1, and spent 27 months in his 40-month sentence.
All these expensive and embarrassing deviant behaviors have overwhelmed the world's largest automobile manufacturer. This makes several senior executives of Volkswagen Group, including Rupert, the former boss of Audi? Steed-lost his job and ruined the product plans of automakers in most parts of the world.
"hard-to-sell brands"
However, at American dealers, Volkswagen did stop moving forward, at least for a while.
Danny McKenna, CEO of McKenna Automotive Group
"When it happened, everything stopped." Mckenna automobile group (mckenna? Cars? Danny McKenna (Danny? McKenna) recalled. The group continues to operate two Volkswagen dealers in the suburbs of Los Angeles, one of which is located in Huntington Beach, California.
In 1950s, his father bought the first Volkswagen. In the following decades, he operated as many as nine franchise stores in California and Hawaii, and started a good life by selling beetles and minibuses. Later, I sold rabbits, Jetta, Tiguan and golf.
When the scandal broke out in 20 15, McKenna said that because brands such as Subaru stole his long-term customers, his new car sales fell by half and never fully recovered.
"This brand is difficult to sell and promote. After the diesel scandal, people's impression of Volkswagen brand is dishonest and unreliable. " McKenna said, "It doesn't matter how many other manufacturers are in the same predicament; Scandals do not harm them as much as the public, because the government takes the public as an example. They nailed these people to the shame column, and people will not forget this. "
Ashley, general manager of Marion Volkswagen dealership? alonzo church
Although McKenna's dealer is one of Volkswagen's oldest dealers in the United States, when the exhaust scandal began, Ashley? Church (Ashley? Church dealership in rural southern Illinois is the latest one. Marion's public? Yes? Marion) just opened a new dealership in 2065438+March 2005. It's a difficult start,' said church, 33, general manager of the dealer.
"When we were stopped selling at first, we didn't know what the long-term consequences of these things we saw would be." She recalled, "In the next two or three months, this became more obvious."
Progress and obstacles
Volkswagen has a long-term goal, that is, to restore its market share in the United States to 5%, more than twice as much as it is now. The carmaker has made some progress by incorporating crossover vehicles into its product portfolio: three-seater Atlas and two-seater Atlas? Cross? The redesigned Tiguan (Volkswagen's best-selling model in the United States) Sport will soon launch an ultra-small crossover with a lower price than Tiguan, called Taos.
Doctor of law? Tai Sen Jomini, Vice President of Electric Power, responsible for the operation of electric power information network (Tai Sen? Jominy) said that due to the diesel emission scandal, Volkswagen's market share initially dropped by 30%, and brand loyalty bottomed out in 20 16, and has been rising every year since then.
This year, the loyalty of car owners is close to 42%, although it is still lower than the industry average of 48%, but it is rising. Jomini said that in the past year, Volkswagen's loyalty has increased by 3.5 percentage points, making it the largest brand among mainstream brands.
This move is largely due to Volkswagen's expansion of its crossover models. Jomini said: "When you provide consumers with the choice to keep the brand, loyalty will change dramatically."
But according to Kelly Blue Book (Kelley? Blue? Shopping data, the biggest obstacle for the public is how to integrate into the dialogue.
This German brand has been in trouble since 20 13, and only 6% to 8% of mainstream brand consumers are willing to consider Volkswagen's products, including the period when it was difficult to get rid of the scandal. Compared with leading brands including Toyota and Ford, about one-third of new car buyers will consider their products.
During the diesel crisis, Volkswagen's reputation was damaged, but it actively repurchased hundreds of thousands of cars. According to Volkswagen's internal data, 32% of new car buyers put Volkswagen on the list of "never buying"-a very high number for a struggling brand.
Scott Keogh, CEO of Volkswagen North America
CEO Scott Keogh (Scott? Keogh) said that with the further deterioration of the emission problem, this figure has been halved, but it is still higher than most brands, and the American public continues to work hard.
"the right direction"
"It's moving in the right direction," Keogh told Automotive News last month. "But if we look at the demand for our products, our sales and our development direction, then the market is developing in our favor. But we must strive for it. "
Keo, 5 1 year-old, was appointed as CEO of Volkswagen North America in 20 18 after working for the same brand Audi for more than ten years. As the first American to take charge of the brand in North America in the past 25 years, the appointment of Keogh and the establishment of semi-autonomous North America have brought hope for Volkswagen dealers to take the helm stably. They will pay attention to their interests and guide them to survive the emission scandal safely.
Keogh said: "There are so many incredible things to say about Volkswagen's dealer network, how they manage and deal with repurchase, and their loyalty and dedication to the brand."
Keogh believes that today's Volkswagen is not the company it was five years ago. Far from it.
"As a person who has spent about 15 years in this company's culture, now this company's culture is different and more open, and anyone can speak freely and express their opinions."
He said: "Its hierarchy is much less now. It has changed. " With the exposure of the diesel engine emission scandal, Volkswagen also "shoulders the mission" and is committed to providing affordable electric vehicles for ordinary consumers.
return
For Volkswagen dealers, different strategies, recognition of their position in the industry and mutual trust are needed to successfully spend the past five years.
At first, Volkswagen dealers lined up to sue manufacturers for their actions, and some did. The relationship between factories and distributors is depressed, which is aggravated by the feeling of being ignored or obeyed by Germany for many years, and the franchise value has fallen to the bottom.
Luciano said: "We were once spurned by everyone, just like rats crossing the street." But the crisis has also changed Volkswagen, persuading the company to listen to the opinions of its American dealers and invest in the coexistence of these dealers.
One of the reasons for the improvement of the relationship is the economy: Volkswagen made great efforts to repair the dealer network during the repurchase period to maintain the survival of its franchisees; You can also resell turbocharged diesel engines bought back by many dealers after maintenance.
For diesel customers, Volkswagen offered generous discounts during the repurchase period-usually 130% or 140% of the vehicle value. Luciano said that this did not convince most people to stay-most consumers would not use the money to buy another Volkswagen-but these offers did lay the foundation for their possible return to the brand.
"When this news first appeared, many people thought that their cars were only worth 1 dollar." He said, "When we bought back the first few cars, those transactions were very cost-effective, which reassured customers. This is a smart move and correct. "
Some dealers, such as Church, have successfully resold fixed turbocharged engines parked all over the country, such as one in Baltimore. She said that re-marketing focusing on TDI engines needed to "adjust" her store strategy, but this change became easier because Volkswagen once again opened its checkbook, offering unlimited mileage warranty and generous financing terms.
At the same time, the American public pays attention to changing their own culture.
"So far, we are a better company." Luciano said, "What we create and where we are are are the products of our surroundings, the TDI crisis and our history. Transparency, caring for each other, and striving to be a better company, like Toyota or Honda-all this has changed. "
This article comes from car home, the author of the car manufacturer, and does not represent car home's position.