Volkswagen not Green Enough

Jun 30 2011

Car loan buyers with an eco conscience might be surprised by the next bit of news: Europe’s biggest car manufacturer, Volkswagen, not only exaggerates its green record, but it is also trying to derail European plans for the reduction of emissions.  They have also failed to make their most popular models, such as the VW Golf, more fuel efficient.

This claim was made by environmental protection group Greenpeace.  The group claims that, while talking a lot about green cars, Volkswagen is lagging behind rivals such as Toyota and BMW when it comes to improving the fuel efficiency of its cars.  They say VW is trying its best to derail planned emission cuts planned by the EU for 2020.

The 24-page report by the activist group is entitled The Dark Side of Volkswagen.  It says Volkswagen has only fitted 6% of its cars with green, fuel efficient engines.  The company then inflates the selling price of these cars by an exorbitant amount, which deters people from buying into greener motoring.

Green Peace plans to target the car manufacturer with a high-profile campaign.  It will start with a series of posters featuring a Darth Vader mask carrying the Volkswagen symbol and the words “Volkswagen.  The Dark Side.”  The campaign will be escalated in the coming months using publicity stunts and social media.

Volkswagen produced 11.4% of the world’s cars in 2010.  The company ostensibly wants to become the world’s most eco-friendly car manufacturer and points to the development of green engine technologies like BlueMotion in this regard.  Greenpeace countered this by saying that Volkswagen fitted these engines to only a small minority of its cars.

Louise Hutchinson.
 

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