Skip to main content
  1. Home
  2. Cars
  3. News

The FTC is suing Volkswagen for deceiving customers with its ‘Clean Diesel’ ads

Andrew Hard
By

Back in 2008, Volkswagen launched its “Clean Diesel” advertisement campaign, which aimed to convince the masses that clean-burning diesel, not hybrid or electric technology, was the most effective way to drive in an environmentally conscious manner. They say hindsight is 20/20, but given what has transpired since, it’s hard to look back on the commercials without bursting a blood vessel or six.

The ads are far more than annoying though, because according to the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), the campaign was intentionally deceitful and perhaps even illegal. On March 29, the commission filed a complaint in federal court that would require Volkswagen to compensate American consumers who bought or leased an affected vehicle between 2008 and 2015.

Related Videos

“For years Volkswagen’s ads touted the company’s ‘Clean Diesel’ cars even though it now appears Volkswagen rigged the cars with devices designed to defeat emissions tests,” said FTC Chairwoman Edith Ramirez. “Our lawsuit seeks compensation for the consumers who bought affected cars based on Volkswagen’s deceptive and unfair practices.”

Throughout the campaign — which was featured in Super Bowl spots, social media movements, and print ads — Volkswagen promoted its diesel products as environmentally friendly, 50-state compliant, and conducive to a high resale value. These claims were obviously false, however the infamous “defeat device” installed on over 500,000 VW and Audi vehicles fooled emissions testing equipment (and the rest of the world) into thinking they were not. The case will be decided by the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California, San Francisco Division.

Volkswagen’s current troubles aren’t solely related to the Dieselgate scandal, however, because on March 29, the brand announced the recall of 5,561 e-Golf’s due to a defect that can result in “unexpected shutdowns.” The fault lies with the battery management software, however the company has already notified e-Golf owners of the issue and will upgrade the software free of charge. You can read more about the story right here.

Editors' Recommendations

Topics
Tesla recalls 363,000 of its vehicles over safety issue
Beta of Tesla's FSD in a car.

Tesla has issued a voluntary recall for 362,758 of its electric vehicles in the U.S. to fix an issue with its Full Self-Driving (FSD Beta) software. If not addressed, the vehicles are at risk of causing an accident.

According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), the recall affects Model S, Model X, Model 3, and Model Y vehicles from 2016 through 2023 model years that have Tesla’s driver-assistance FSD software.

Read more
BMW i4 vs. Tesla Model 3: Which EV sedan is better?
2022 BMW i4 M50

The BMW i4 and Tesla Model 3 are two of the hottest electric cars on the market today. Both vehicles offer a range of features designed to make driving easy and efficient, as well as attractive styling. But each has its advantages and disadvantages, and there is much that sets them apart in terms of performance, technology, convenience, and cost.

Deciding between the two? That's why we've put together this guide. Here are the differences and similarities between the Tesla Model 3 and BMW i4, and why you might want one over the other.
Design

Read more
How much does an electric car battery cost?
electrify america evgo and chargepoint interoperability agreement for electric car charging station

Electric cars are often hailed as being cheaper to operate and repair than gas-powered cars. It makes sense — on the operation side, you only need to pay for electricity (not gasoline), and on the repair side, there’s no motor or transmission to deal with.

But electric cars have other costly repairs, and while in total they do generally cost less than repairs for gasoline cars, it’s worth knowing about the potential costs ahead of time. Perhaps the most obvious, and one of the most costly, has to do with an electric car’s battery. After all, while all cars have batteries, those in electric cars are far bigger and more advanced — and thus can cost quite a bit to replace.
How much does an electric car battery cost?

Read more