First up on the chopping
block would be MAN, the division that supplies ship engines, gear
units, propulsion systems, and other industry components that’s worth
between $4 and $5 billion euros, the report said. But an unnamed source
(our favorite kind) also said, “Volkswagen may also consider divesting
luxury car brands Bentley and Lamborghini or motor bike brand Ducati,
although these units don’t really move the needle.”
Lamborghini
(pictured above) and Bugatti (pictured, top) are famed for their
supercars — particularly the former, which has steadily put out models
since its transformation from a Italian tractor company into an
automaker in 1963, and whose posters have graced the walls of many a
teenage kid throughout the years. Bugatti was recently resurrected as a
car company in 1998, after its original incarnation produced some of the
most celebrated vehicles in automotive history throughout the first
half of the 20th century. And the Bologna, Italy-based Ducati needs no
introduction to motorcycle fans, thanks to its ultra-fast superbikes and
their sweeping, distinctive styling.
It’s less likely VW would
have to let go of Audi or Porsche, at least in the first go-around, if
worse comes to worst. Volkswagen has yet to comment on the latest news,
although it continues to insist that the 800,000 cars recently
discovered to emit greater carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions and consume
more fuel than disclosed are in question, and that the final number of
those may in fact be smaller.
What isn’t in dispute is the main problem, which is that the automaker has admitted 11 million VW TDI diesel vehicles
globally cheat on emissions tests, and in the US, emit up to 40 times
the maximum NOx compounds allowed by federal law in regular driving
tests, as caught by some independent researchers trying to learn more
about how VW achieved its clean diesel design. We can safely say “clean
diesel” is dead, as veteran auto industry exec Bob Lutz recently put it.
To
make a November 30th deadline, VW submitted to CA regulators plans to
clean up the three types of four-cylinder TDI vehicles affected in the
emissions scandal, but neither side has yet to close what those plans
are and whether they will adequately solve the problem — not to mention
what kind of effect they’ll have on the performance, mileage,
drivability, resale value, and reliability of the 482,000 vehicles in
question. A more recent disclosure that 85,000 of the automaker’s six-cylinder Touareg TDI models, the Porsche Cayenne, and some Audis, is also still up in the air without resolution.
12/08/2015
VW may have to sell Lamborghini, Bugatti, Ducati to cover emissions scandal costs
Volkswagen’s troubles with
falsifying its emissions data for both diesel and even some gasoline
powered vehicles are now well-documented, and it looks like the company
may have to sell some of its prized assets in order to pay for the
inevitable recalls, regulatory fines, and class-action lawsuits headed
its way. The automaker has just secured a credit line of over $21
billion, according
to Reuters. In order to do so, Volkswagen Group had to assure the 13
financial institutions involved throughout Europe that it’s prepared to
sell whatever it needs to for collateral.
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