While Volkswagen may still be months away from announcing a recall in the United States for vehicles found to have “defeat device” diesel emissions cheating software (recalls in Europe are expected to start in January 2016), the automaker this week announced a “Goodwill Package” that will financially compensate some owners here in the States.
The package includes a $500 prepaid Visa card that can be spent anywhere plus a $500 VW dealership card that can be used at any of the automaker’s stores. The package also includes free 24-hour roadside assistance for three years. VW says it hopes owners see this as a first step towards restoring trust.
Right now, the package is only being offered to owners of VW-branded vehicles fitted with the 2.0-liter TDI diesel engine affected by the emissions cheating scandal; but the same will be offered to Audi owners in coming days. Furthermore, owners of VW vehicles (and numerous Audis and even some Porsches) with the 3.0-liter TDI the EPA recently alleged to also have emissions cheating software aren’t eligible yet, as VW is still investigating the matter.
Owners of the following vehicles are eligible for the package.
VW Jetta TDI (Model Years 2009 – 2015)
VW Jetta SportWagen TDI (Model Years 2009-2014)
VW Golf TDI (Model Years 2010-2015)
VW Golf SportWagen TDI (Model Year 2015)
VW Beetle TDI and VW Beetle Convertible TDI (Model Years 2012-2015)
VW Passat TDI (Model Years 2012-2015)
Full details on the package and eligibility can be found on the special website www.vwdieselinfo.com that VW has set up for concerned owners in the U.S.
Unfortunately for VW, its troubles show no sign of abating. The automaker is still working on a fix for the 11 million cars already confirmed to have the emissions cheating software, and now there’s potentially hundreds of thousands or perhaps even millions of more vehicles affected due to the EPA’s claimed discovery of the software on VW’s 3.0-liter diesel models. On top of all this, VW has discovered that around 800,000 of its cars had their CO2 levels—and thus fuel consumption figures—understated during CO2 certification.
To keep track of our past coverage on VW's emissions cheating scandal, head to our Volkswagen news hub.
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