As the Diesel Emits: Volkswagen Confirms One TDI Doesn't Have Cheat, Price of Diesel Vehicles Drop

Another week has passed and some new information has come to light in the Volkswagen diesel scandal.

First off, Volkswagen has confirmed one of their diesel engines doesn't have the cheat. The EA 288 TDI engine used in vehicles for the European-market has been checked out to see if it had the illegal software. In a statement issued by Volkswagen, the engine did not have “software constituting an improper defeat device as defined in laws is installed in vehicles with EA288 EU5 as well as EU6 engines in the European Union with those engines comply with legal requirements and environmental standards."

Also, one of the questions that have been up in the air is how would the scandal affect the prices of used Volkswagen TDI models. Kelly Blue Book looked at data from auto auctions before and after the scandal broke. According to their research, the average price of diesel models dropped 16 percent. Average prices of gas models dropped 2.9 percent in the same time.

"According to Kelley Blue Book Field Analysts, some auctions are still holding off on selling the affected Volkswagen inventory. While Volkswagen diesel auction prices are in decline, we could see larger fluctuations depending on how this inventory is handled," said Tim Fleming, analyst for Kelley Blue Book.

Source: Volkswagen, Kelly Blue Book

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Volkswagen confirms: EA288 engines designed for EU5 and EU6 are not affected

• Thorough appraisal of the Diesel emissions issue
  

Volkswagen confirms today that no software constituting an improper defeat device as defined in law is installed in vehicles with EA 288 EU5 as well as EU6-engines in the European Union. Consequently, new vehicles of the Volkswagen Group offered within the European Union with those engines comply with legal requirements and environmental standards.

Volkswagen AG is systematically reviewing this issue worldwide. The group strives for a holistic solution for complying with the respective valid standards.

After thorough examination it is now confirmed that no software constituting an improper defeat device as defined in law is installed in vehicles with EA 288 EU5-engines. Before, Volkswagen Group has confirmed that new EU6-compliant vehicles offered within the European Union fulfil all legal requirements and environmental standards.

Volkswagen customers can visit the corporate websites such as www.volkswagen.de/info, which was set up on October 2, 2015 and enter the chassis number of their vehicle to find out straight away whether their vehicles are affected. Similar customer websites are active in the other EU countries and for the Audi, SEAT and Škoda brands.

Work on the technical solutions detailed in the plan of measures is currently proceeding at full speed. Remedial action on the vehicles will begin in January 2016 – at no cost to customers. The measures are currently being developed for each affected series and each affected model year and will first be presented to the responsible authorities. Volkswagen will subsequently inform the owners of these vehicles over the next weeks and months.

VOLKSWAGEN DIESEL VEHICLE PRICES DECLINE NEARLY 16 PERCENT, ACCORDING TO KELLEY BLUE BOOK DATA

• New-Car Shopping Activity Also Impacted by Recent Emissions Issue
  

IRVINE, Calif., October 21, 2015 – Kelley Blue Book www.kbb.com, the only vehicle valuation and information source trusted and relied upon by both consumers and the automotive industry, today reports that average auction prices, along with new-car shopping activity on KBB.com, for Volkswagen diesel vehicles have declined four weeks after the diesel emissions issue was announced.

The average auction price for Volkswagen diesel models dropped by nearly 16 percent since the news broke of the emissions crisis.[1] The average auction price for the brand's gasoline-powered vehicles declined by 2.9 percent.1 On KBB.com, Volkswagen new-car shopping activity for affected TDI models has decreased on average by 2.4 percent.

"According to Kelley Blue Book Field Analysts, some auctions are still holding off on selling the affected Volkswagen inventory," said Tim Fleming, analyst for Kelley Blue Book. "While Volkswagen diesel auction prices are in decline, we could see larger fluctuations depending on how this inventory is handled."

Volkswagen Site Metrics from Kelley Blue Book's KBB.com*

• The Volkswagen Golf SportWagen and Golf have seen the most significant declines in shopping activity, with decreases of 6.2 percent and 3.7 percent respectively.
• The Audi A3 and Volkswagen Jetta SportWagen are the only TDI models seeing increases in activity, at 1.6 and 3 percent respectively, which is consistent with segment-level traffic on KBB.com.
• Audi A3 shoppers are increasingly cross-shopping competing luxury models following the announcement. The most highly cross-shopped vehicles are the Lexus NX, BMW 2-Series and Mercedes-Benz CLA. **
  

* Kelley Blue Book's KBB.com Site Traffic, Comparing September Pre- (Weeks of August 31-September 13) and Post- (Weeks of September 14-October 18) Announcement Data. Please note: Data is compiled weekly (Monday-Sunday).

** Kelley Blue Book's KBB.com Cross-Shopping Data for Week of October 12-18, 2015

"During the past four weeks following the emissions announcement, traffic to KBB.com has generally decreased after an initial surge in interest for Volkswagen diesel models, likely because of the stop-sell and negative press," said Arthur Henry, senior manager of Strategic Insights for Kelley Blue Book. "Interestingly, with regard to cross-shopping data, consumers are not looking at fuel-efficient or hybrid vehicles. For example, shoppers interested in the Jetta TDI are looking to the Honda Civic, Mazda3 and Ford Fusion as alternatives, according to cross-shopping data from KBB.com."