Anyone had a VW recalled yet?

Maybe they brushed it under the carpet...

Would people actually take their cars in? any mod would be likely to reduce performance and increase the chance of an MoT failure on emissions.

Lots of sheeple would. The rest will wait to read about any problems before deciding.

Tim

I wonder what would be the legal position of an owner who continued to drive a vehicle that greatly exceeded emissions limits if they were made aware of that fact, and that a free fix was available?

Chris

Surely the limits are only those specified by the MoT, and IIUC the VWs et al pass that test easily. Unless a rolling road, real world test was put in, which would actually give a truer, more useful indication of emissions. The powers that be set the standards and methods of testing, I don't see they can go back on that, change for the future, but not retrospectively.

As long as that was the case, then all would be well.

Much of the information available at the moment concerns the situation in the US, and my understanding was that the affected VW's there would fail a roadside test.

Agreed, but it seems likely that the low emission zone limits will be lowered, and the number of cities that charge will be increased. It might mean getting the modification done, or paying to enter those zones.

Chris

At present the affected cars have an agreed emissions/taxation band which which may or may not make them eligible for certain city areas. If the mods are done, do you expect, that their emissions class will alter? It would be a paperwork nightmare for all concerned and would involve re-certification for registration. As I see it the best, quickest, cleanest course of action would be for VW to offer the purchased price back to owners, perhaps against another new car, or just a buy back. In their terms the cost is trivial and would stop all bitching.

I'd assumed, perhaps wrongly, that after modification the car would meet the emission standard that it had been sold at. There would be no change in the taxation band, but performance would be worse than it was originally advertised as.

Would that buy-back price be the full price as originally paid by the purchaser, or a reduced amount based on the car's current value?

I can't see VW swallowing the former worldwide; the cost wouldn't be that trivial.

If the latter, it would be very difficult to agree a value.

What would be the legal position from all aspects if an owner declined the offered price?

Chris

The UK government have explicitly said that the emissions band won't be altered for the affected cars, whether they're recalled or not.

If it was altered, then they'd have to look at re-banding all modified cars, plus probably other knock-on bureaucracy...

I have one of these VWs (2 litre Passat). It passes the MOT fine, but I sus pect should be in a higher road tax bracket were it not for the sabotaged s oftware. I have had two letters from VW, the second one saying that they ar e going to modify the software and it won't affect performance. We'll see. What I don't understand is, if VW can design software to bring the car to i ts stated emissions without loss of performance, why was it necessary to fi t the scam software in the fist place?

If they could, they would have done so in the first place. I would love to have the cash available to get your car put on a dyno before and after the software change, I would put a small wager on it being less powerful after, although whether you will actually realise it or not is unknown at this stage. If you have it done please let us know the truth afterwards.

I'm surprised the car lobbies (AA/RAC) or consumer groups (Which?) haven't taken this on, or if they have, it hasn't been widely reported. Or anything concrete has come out of the rest of Europe or the US. Of course the fact I haven't seen anything is not much of a measure . . .

suspect should be in a higher road tax bracket were it not for the sabotag ed software. I have had two letters from VW, the second one saying that the y are going to modify the software and it won't affect performance. We'll s ee. What I don't understand is, if VW can design software to bring the car to its stated emissions without loss of performance, why was it necessary t o fit the scam software in the fist place?

I am very sceptical about this and would love to dyno it as you suggest. I have to say, if I don't notice a difference then I suppose do I care. The m ain problem is the fuel consumption. Some days I can get over 60 mpg, and o n others I struggle get 50 mpg, and for no apparent reason. So it's going t o be difficult to know what effect this software mod has made. As regards performance, I suppose I could do my own 0-60 tests and come up with a workable average. But then, if I do another lot after the software c hange and find it's not so good, how do I convince VW?

So am I. And what I think is even worse, is that the US have sued VW - in a class action - for the sum of (I may be remembering this sum incorrectly) $52bn. How come our army of lawyers hasn't got off their backsides and done the same already?

I think the situation in the US is a bit different though. There, VW diesels were very heavily marketed as being super-clean. Clearly this has turned out to be a very big fib and they deserve every penalty being dished out there for that.

Here though the emphasis has more been on economy, performance, reliability etc. and whilst economy has been a bit over-hyped, they are no worse than any other EU supplied and tested car. Namely, they're all lying. In all other regards the cars pretty much live up to owners' expectations. We weren't lied to to any like the same degree.

Tim

It won't be less powerful as max power at any rpm is at full throttle.

Emission cheat mode never ran to WOT and detecting WOT is what makes it switch off the cheat mode.