German media reveal VW is intentionally slowing down electric car sales

[@electricviking]

The best solar company in Australia just installed my new solar system. Check them out here: www.resinc.com.au/electricviking

[@tedg1609]

VW Never should have fired Deitz.

[@MarkRijckenberg]

Herbert Diess

[@VonBrügge]

This was indeed very good. He was responsible for the absolute awful ID3 & ID4 desaster.

[@bunsw2070]

Duntz.

[@Shinael]

Diess... and you're right, but investors wanted short term money in return witch would not be the case with an ambitious EV politic. So they fired Diess to replace him by an ICE puppet.

[@patrickpirzer4080]

@@Shinael True true. And this is one of the main problems. That investors want their dividend. What ever it means. Even when it means that progression has to be stopped.

[@fyodor8008]

VW thought so hard about cost and profit that they forgot innovation and strategy.

[@claudep.255]

They were very innovative to cheat the tests on diesel cars.

[@edipopplinger2078]

What innovatives? Exploding batteries, brocken wheels or brakes as in chinese EV's for example?

[@Withnail1969]

People mostly dont want electric cars.

[@rorykeegan1895]

@@Withnail1969 Yours is a factually incorrect statement totally devoid of any supporting evidence. You must be a Republican Trump supporter who prefers lies to truth.

[@rorykeegan1895]

What? When did VW ever do innovation? They make cheap cars for cheap people. What does Volkswagen mean when translated into English, the hint is in the name!

[@amandagrant4331]

However, Volkswagen cannot reduce the sales of EV manufacturers in China.

[@edipopplinger2078]

Yes we can!

[@holycreation]

​@edipopplinger2078 yeah right dream on. It's already happening

[@GallAnonim-jx2cz]

Best selling cars in China are not EVs but PHEVs.... Smart companies like BYD offer every model in both EV and PHEV version.

[@thyristo]

​@@GallAnonim-jx2czIncorrect. Sales in China, August 2024: Battery Electric Vehicle (BEV) sales 583,000 units, accounting for about 56.8% of the total NEV sales., Plug-in Hybrid Electric Vehicle (PHEV) sales 438,000 units. PHEVS are transitory in order to fix people on BEVs. It's a long term strategy to get as many people into BEVs as fast as possible. If only BEVs would be sold the transitioning to only BEVs would take longer.

[@GallAnonim-jx2cz]

@@thyristo This includes small

[@yo2trader539]

VW made €10bn in 1H2024. It doesn't take a genius to figure out VW is playing chess with the German government.

[@ravanpee1325]

The Holding company (Porsche, Audi, Seat, Skoda etc) made a profit whereas the brand VW is in the red

[@eymaslacker]

Imagine its the 1800s, your job is changing and lighting the candles in the street lamps. This new "light bulb" starts showing up. You think "if i learn how to change light bulbs which pay 10 cents a bulb, people might not want my 1 dollar per candle, candle lighting any more and i could lose my job!" VW's logic is just as stupid. Yeah keep lighting those candles while everyone passes you buy then wonder why no one is asking you to light candles anymore

[@filippxx]

The board has no other way in getting their bonuses, they are losing money on every EV.

[@snookmeister55]

Gas lights after candles.

[@krane15]

Nobody's passing them. All manufactures are struggle to understand what consumer want in their EVs. I can answer that for free: a cure to range anxiety. Nobody wants to go through more hassle while paying a higher price. Its just not worth it. The first EVs with a 500 mi range will sell like hotcakes. At that distance, RA is a thing of the past. Regardless of the iffy net work.

[@razakaze]

Looks like a Nokia repeat.. Profits from cashcow until the company defaults from disruption

[@pekahon]

It's ICE manufacturers own fault. They waited over ten years, while Tesla and chinese ramped up their production.

[@Knightmare919]

Heres a fun fact the chinese could easily out compete most western brands in price and same quality.

[@philtucker1224]

@@pekahon yes I still remember the utter shock at Land Rover in 2015 when the realised their global mainly diesel engined car market would have to cease to exist after 2030. They really were in denial up until then!

[@ireminmon]

And how's the all-innovative Tesla doing while we're at it? Numbers all green I suppose? When I drive around my town I hardly see any Teslas, and the few I do see are only here because EU and the state are forcing this electric garbage down our throats.

[@patrickpirzer4080]

Slowing down the EV sales and raising the prices for combustions is the recipe for the perfect storm. I fear that VW and some other german car manufacturers will end as the mail order companies 15 years ago. Let's go back into time. There were four big mail order companies in Germany which were very big and mighty. But then came in 1995 the internet and online merchants like Amazon. Two of the mail order companies - Baur and Otto - saw the problem and reacted right on time with their own online platforms. But Quelle and Neckermann were sleeping. Quelle ended in 2009 and Neckermann followed in 2012. When i see what is happening at Volkswagen, Porsche, Audi and Daimler Benz today i feel having a flashback. I think that by the end BMW and Opel will be the only survivors.

[@MS-wz9jm]

People need to understand this isnt about car manufacturers. The German manufacturing sector has collapsed due to its anti Russian policies. Germany relied on cheap Russian energy, it then decided that it would rather pay for expensive energy elsewhere and the result is the collapse of German manufacturing. All sorts of German companies are more out of Germany as a result.

[@edipopplinger2078]

nonsense. The only reason is gullibility in a totalitarian Chinese state that has poured endless amounts of money into all industries. With the result that China is now choking on it. It was about time that the theft of ideas and the squandering of money stopped.

[@GallAnonim-jx2cz]

Best selling cars in China are not EVs but PHEVs.... Smart companies like BYD offer every model in both EV and PHEV version.

[@jasonmugridge]

@@GallAnonim-jx2czall part of the transition to full EV’s

[@jasonmugridge]

I wasn’t aware of that, thanks for sharing. And I’d assume the transition for mail order companies would be a lot easier than for car companies. I don’t think the average consumer realises that it’s such a different business model for the car companies to move to EV’s that it’s almost impossible for them to.

[@joehowe9532]

When I recently purchased my Tesla model Y with full self driving, I started the process by ordering the car online-it took 43 seconds from start to finish. No deal or hassling or bullshit, just a simple clean process. Then, when I went to pick the car up, I didn’t have to speak to anyone. I simply did a walk around the car, filled out the one form electronically to take the car and off I went; again, the cleanest, simplest car purchase I have ever made. It isn’t just that the legacy auto makers can’t make a good EV at a profit. They’re saddled with massive legacy costs, unions, debt, dealership networks, top heavy management, and an arrogance that’s leading them into oblivion.

[@markmiller8903]

YOU FUCKED UP AND BOUGHT AN EV! HOW EMBARRASING !!!

[@tiagofermar]

I don’t plan to buy any electric car any time soon but.. you’ve got me thinking. And you’ve got a few very solid points.

[@janvandermeer6159]

The whole of germany has the look and feel of the nineteen eighties.

[@larryc1616]

It might look like the 30's when their auto industry collapse

[@yves2932]

You have no idea how the 80ies looked like over here. LOL

[@huckleberryfinn6578]

Unfortunately, it's true.

[@norwegianzound]

​@@yves2932 It looked like Germany today.

[@yves2932]

@@norwegianzound I dont know where you're looking. Hamburg looks very different than in the 80ies. You wouldnt recognice the shopping streets, the party hotspots. The U/S public railway stations got a total makeover and are using new equipment. Plus many kilometers of new railway lines in the city. Most sport stadiums, office quarters, the congress center, the aiport terminals have been torn down and replaced with new buildings. Most of the center was remodelled to be more pedestrian friendly. And we have many new spots that didnt even exist at the time, eg three new music halls, a whole new living quarter, a new big city park.

[@grandprix1337]

No. The opposite in the UK as ICE cars are starting to be 'rationed' by manufacturers because oversupply is leading to penalties. And those penalties get worse each year to 2030.

[@GallAnonim-jx2cz]

Best selling cars in China are not EVs but PHEVs.... Smart companies like BYD offer every model in both EV and PHEV version.

[@davidbeppler3032]

@@GallAnonim-jx2cz Yes, 4-5 year lifecycle cars are selling well today. People are not angry yet. That will take a few years. Build a cheap car designed to last 4-5 years and just 150-200k miles. VS Tesla that are designed to last 750k miles and 20+ years. Only one will win.

[@FabioCapela]

​@@davidbeppler3032 Those new Chinese EVs are sometimes the news here due to app drivers (mainly from 99 Táxi, but also from Uber) changing to them in increasing numbers. Those are people who drive dozens of times more than a regular car owner. And not only they are praising those Chinese cars for being more robust and reliable than regular ICE cars, even those racking the highest mileages are reporting no issues with the motors and little to no battery degradation - and if none of them are reporting issues with battery degradation or the power train yet, a regular user is very unlikely to ever face that kind of issue in the car's lifetime. I, personally, drive less in a decade than most of those app drivers drive in a single year.

[@Chainyanker007]

@@davidbeppler3032- As soon as more Teslas hit 500k+ miles and the word gets out to more people ICE sales will crash, esp. with ever increasing battery tech which will improve on cold weather performance and charge speed. Give it another 5-8 yrs ICE will collapse, maybe sooner.

[@fakamada]

@@davidbeppler3032 Just ignore him. Best selling cars in China are BEVs. He has literally zero idea about the statistics.

[@joegill945]

In summary VW and legacy car makers are not encouraging EV sales since they have met the minimum in order to aboid purchasing carbon credits and will focus on more profitable Ice vehicles. There saves you 18mins and the repetitive "roof is on fire quotes". You're welcome

[@joe2mercs]

Tesla are rubbing their hands at the opportunity being presented to them in the European EV market. Remember when everyone said “the competition is coming and they will wipe out Tesla”, well they came and found that the cost of competing is more than they can afford. VW group are not alone in having vast debts, most of the world’s car companies have the same issue.

[@mariusj8542]

Not entirely sure about that, in Norway where I live 90% of new car sales are electric, and been over 80% for years. Tesla has been the most selling car here for years, but now the market is flooded by Chinese cars, with extreme value for money. Our family have a Tesla, BYD , MG and an etron Audi. On the Tesla we lost 10k$ due to Tesla needed to reduce the price in order to compete with Chinese, so since the new Teslas are 10k cheaper it’s difficult to get the second hand value we expected since we bought it 3 years ago. That being said , Audi , Mercedes and BMW are struggling equally. These new Chinese cars are looking great, and the quality ( the MG, that my daughter is driving, we have had for 5 years but it comes with 7 years full warranty. The car has been great, the batteries great compared to the Audi, I would say in the winter the degradation is about the same as Tesla which is a few percent.) You can just observe a lot of new Chinese cars on the road. I just read that so far this year Chinese cars had a market share of almost 15%. That’s crazy compared to the best selling car brand in Norway which is Tesla with a market share of 15-20%. Most of that sales has been due to the model Y. Now BYD is launching its compact class for about 20-25k$ and before Tesla has launched their cheap compact. Many expect that this compact class from BYD and Tesla will push Norway to 100% electric car sales out of all new cars sold in some of the last months of this year. The market is changing rapidly.

[@santostv.]

You know Tesla is number 1 ev in Europe?

[@BjorckBengt]

The problem is of course not that VW cannot fire people as they wish. The problem is that the leadersship failed to innovate as the business environment changed. The only ones that needs to be fired is the leadership. The problem is not underperforming workers.

[@magnushelin007]

👍👍👍

[@joehowe9532]

Both! 😮.

[@jamesvandamme7786]

They fired the guy who was going to lead them to EV leadership.

[@okcantbelieveit294]

Why is it that EVs have got to be produced, and sold at a loss, just to satisfy a few greenies? They’re not the answer as they stand, the greenies that is! There’s the Chinese charging disaster to bear in mind. The summers been a scorcher! There’s very little electricity available for EV charging some days. Cars have been left plugged at charging stations in the hope the electricity comes back on. Best part of a day in some cases!

[@davidpenlington2753]

They say they don't like losing money on EVs & yet VW has a debt of US$192 Billion, so obviously ice vehicle are good for profit ! I have said before if you sell the most cars in the world VW & Toyota but have debts of this magnitude why do they keep going? glad I never followed there business model.

[@ericbennik2071]

Have a look at their financial statements. If they sold their leasing company they would have zero debt

[@santostv.]

Most companies are full of debt😂

[@davidbeppler3032]

@@ericbennik2071 If everyone paid the loan. With defaults in the 5% range, way higher than ever before.... your comment does not hold water. Tow truck companies are working overtime every day trying to keep up.

[@devonbikefilms]

Accountancy sleight of hand. Fine until a disruption comes along to blow apart the comfortable illusion……..

[@yo2trader539]

Automaker's financing arm will borrow money from capital markets (i.e. issue debt) to lend to consumers in the form of auto-loans. They make a small interest rate differential...usually. Thus, the more cars you sell every year the more debt there should be on the B/S.

[@SylvainOfGandahar]

People dont want the garage-burners with super-depreciation hours charging time and explosion risk. The entire tech is crap.

[@softwarephil1709]

I don’t know about Germany or Australia, but in USA, interest in EVs is 1/2 what it was a year ago.

[@skierpage]

That's not true. GM EV sales are up, Ford EV sales are up.

[@SigFigNewton]

Not even remotely true. EV sales are UP from last year

[@SigFigNewton]

U been listening to talk fossil fuel pocket congressmen talking about the drop in EV sales from Q4 to Q1 without realizing that auto sales are seasonal?

[@SigFigNewton]

The far right chatter blows and blows, yet EV market share grows and grows.

[@SigFigNewton]

Seek. Data.

[@paulconnolly4483]

Did we really expect that companies would focus on profit over environmental issues? What a shock ⚡️ profit is more important to them 😅

[@petebest8422]

Yes but now they are losing out to Chinese ev car companies. So it looks like they are failing for the moment

[@lomayagi]

Forest for the Trees. Short term profit at the expense of long term growth and profitability. The world is already going EV. VW is a future merger/bailout relic of a company now

[@johnmightymole2284]

Short term profit for long term irrelevance.

[@philiptaylor7902]

Watched a great Everything Electric podcast the other day, interview with Mike Murphy. Get the marketing of EV's right based on their benefits to the customer (and not on environmental benefits) and EV's will sell, even to current skeptics. Take the politics and virtue signalling out of the equation and sell them on the fact they are a superior technology to ICE (quieter, greater convenience, cheaper to run, faster etc.)

[@ephorntube]

Need more marketing to inform tho, as many think the EV car battery will only last as long as their cell phone battery.

[@saml4537]

I have an ID4. Love it and have no issues with the software.

[@EPeltzer]

You might try going to rent a Tesla sometime then you will have something to compare it to. We bought an ID.4 last year and found the software to be sluggish but not bad coming from 15-year-old cars. Then we bought a used model 3. It's like night and day. The phone app for Volkswagen is basically useless and the very few functions it has, only a couple of them actually work. The Tesla phone app does like 10 or 15 times more functions. And they all work. Also the phone acts as a key, meanwhile VW makes you carry around the big old clunky key in your pocket. Navigating with charge stops in the Tesla is just incredibly well thought out and seamless. VW it's just a complete mess. Also in the morning when you get in the VW it takes about 15 seconds for the dashboard to fully wake up, ridiculous. I've backed out of my long driveway and driven down the block quite a ways before the radio even plays. I've had the ID for a year and a half and you know how many over the air updates it has had? Zero. The Tesla has already had three and they added significant new features. VW score 10. Tesla score 95.

[@saml4537]

@EPeltzer Actually, I sold my MY and purchased the ID4 at a v good price 😂 The tech in the Tesla is definitely better, I could just no longer stand living with the stigma of owning a car made by Musk. For me the ID4 does have a few advantages 1. More range than my RWD MY 2. Better seats (Tesla's plastic seats make you sweat horribly) 3. Rear windscreen wipers 4. The rain detection wipers actually work 5. Much better turning circle 6.Better build quality IMO 6. Android Auto (Tesla's voice recognition is horrible) 7. Much better looking than the MY. This is subjective, but I could never unsee one reviewers comment that the MY looks like a fat guy in a sperm costume....8. Heads-up dispay. Finally, I no longer have to cringe every time Musk opens his mouth. In any case, I think it's awesome so many people are now considering EVs, no matter what brand you drive. They are only going to get better and better 😊

[@carfanfan]

Legacy auto manufacturers should learn from the cell phone wars in the early 2010's. Look what happened to Nokia and Blackberry. They are gone today, because they didn't adapt fast enough.

[@snookmeister55]

One big problem they have is inferior technology and the other is cash - Many billions are needed to stay in this race and they are up to their eyeballs in debt. See Hyundai in Georgia spending 8 billion or so on one BEV factory with battery production.

[@stefan2796]

The ID7 is a good car, everything older is tofu crap for a premium price. No wonder they are in trouble.

[@GallAnonim-jx2cz]

ID7 costs 21k EUR in China and nobody buys it. Why? Because there are better cars for less. And actually best selling are PHEVs with high range, which none on the western brands offers. Literally best selling category is 100% Chinese brands. Foreign brands sleeping.

[@peterbroad1772]

I agree, the ID7 tourer in particular is very appealing, if about $5-10k overpriced. Isn't it funny when they make essentially an electric version of an existing VW product (namely the Passat), they make a good car instead of the generic looking (at best) ID3. I'd like to see more like the ID7 because the push towards SUV bodies is ridiculous when range is a worry.

[@zilla85]

I would like to mention, that the Volkswagen software was really a sucker, but now it is decent. Not on par (in features) with Tesla or something, but it gets the things done, is comfortable and is very stable.

[@daviddunmore8415]

They should prioritise mass producing EVs (and introduce an updated e-up/Skoda and Seat versions with 400Km range)

[@GallAnonim-jx2cz]

In China best selling are not EVs but PHEVs.... Smart companies like BYD offer every model in both EV and PHEV version in SAME PRICE.

[@monobryn64]

@@GallAnonim-jx2czSomeone else corrected you on this in another thread: BEVs are outselling PHEV by ~150000 units per month.

[@bethechange36]

I think they are responding to consumer demand in Europe. They like EVs but they do not have the demand for them in Europe. Probably why they have pledged to invest so much in Rivian. When statutorily they absolutely have to sell EVs ( as everyone will be forced to buy EVs), I bet their strategy will change accordingly.

[@yo2trader539]

VW and many other global automakers are saying that there isn't enough BEV demand to justify the additional investment, which is why they're changing course. If I recall correctly, half of all global BEV sales are in Chinese market, which as its own tech eco-system. In Western Europe and North America, the most important markets for global automakers, sales of hybrids are increasingly outperforming BEVs.

[@bethechange36]

@yo2trader539 i agree with you. I wouldn't call European and North American markets their most important markets, though - VW sold nearly as many cars in China as they did in Europe.

[@257.4MHz]

Who ever thought legacy ICE would do anything other than fight EVs tooth and nail until the bloody end?

[@norwegianzound]

So an id3 is 40% more expensive than an equivalent Golf, and they are losing money on them!!! WTF?

[@gzubeck3]

One of your best videos in awhile Sam. Keep em coming as thought provoking insights into the EV world.

[@callmebigpapa]

My BEV budget is more in line with a 2013 Nissan Leaf price :) Imagine if VW had started emabracing this in 2016 when due to Tesla's success it was clear where the industry would need to go????

[@Chainyanker007]

As I see it, for every EV a legacy auto company sells, such as VW, means one less ICE car sold whereas an EV only car company, such as Tesla, sells an EV it means one less car sale for legacy auto, EV or ICE. A win-win situation for EV only companies like Tesla which makes a profit whereas legacy auto loses money on their EVs, a lose-lose situation. Tough situation for legacy auto some of which will not survive.

[@joehowe9532]

You didn’t mention the $9 billion that Tesla has received from Legacy auto makers in carbon credits. That $9 billion gift from Tesla’s competitors has paid for two giga factories! Total profit.

[@icehousemedia1353]

As we have seen in recent days, Russia paying some KZbinrs to deliver propaganda. Now, I'm pretty sure the same stuff goes on with anti-EV propaganda, some especially American car tubers are attacking EVs,s, Cybertruck, etc with viscous content that has no credibility. I have a strong feeling those types of videos are paid content. This needs to be exposed and who is paying for it. Thanks for this Video Viking.

[@santostv.]

😂 Tesla is Elon destroying the brand and cybertruck is idiotic on par with what vw is doing meanwhile Tesla has a cult following like apple and they are free advertisers for elon and tesla ect

[@marcd6897]

@@oldbloke204yeah, wakey wakey my old bloke, the what you call “Tesla pumpers” are easily outnumbered by the hundreds of Anti-EV KZbin creators.

[@larryc1616]

Lobbyists

[@marcd6897]

@@oldbloke204 awwww …. sweet, god bless your little heart, you’re clearly not coming around a lot on KZbin if you think there is no other classic car company fanboys making a living off YT “promoting” their “opinions” (aka how great ICE cars are, and how shitty EVs are). Aaaaaah, but I get it, with Tesla they’re pumpers, with traditional cars they’re enthusiasts so it’s something else, right? And they all do this as a selfless hobby because they’re just kind folks…. 🤣 You’re truly hilarious…

[@marcd6897]

@@oldbloke204 yawn, nice try. Just continue to pretend to be clueless (well, probably you are)… Sorry, not wasting more time on you.

[@danielbis]

You are absolutely right, the traditional manufacturers do not want to make a quick transition to the production of electric cars, they only produce as much as is necessary to meet the CO2 standards. In Romania (as in Europe) there is a drastic decrease in the sale of electric cars because: - the subsidy has decreased from 10.200 to 5.100 Euros in Romania (it was eliminated in Germany and also decreased in other countries) - there are few or no cars in stock - it takes at least half a year for delivery and as such does not qualify for subsidies (need 2 months for delivery) - many are in top 4WD variants with very high prices - there is no possibility of a minimum configuration: 2WD or 4WD, color, battery capacity, etc. and you have to be satisfied with what is in stock. In practice, they are wasting time and do not innovate or develop the production of electric cars. And to prevent the invasion of Chinese cars in Europe, they put additional customs duties: 17.4% for BYD cars, 19.9% ​​for Geely cars and 37.6% for SAIC cars + existing 10% Practically MG4, which is the only model from China, has customs duties of 47.6% and despite this, it has better prices than traditional manufacturers. But in the coming years, Chinese manufacturers will set up factories in Europe to avoid these customs duties, but I expect increase custom duties on batteries and raw materials, subassemblies and part to from China. There is a false rumor that denigrates electric cars and a false impression has been created that electric cars are not good, they are expensive (partially true) and no one wants them. I personally would like to buy an electric car, but I have no choice because there are few models on the Romanian market, I don't really find them in stock (even at Hyundai: no Ioniq 6 and only 10 Ioniq 5 that are already sold, although they have not yet arrived in Romania). At the moment, I have no choice but to wait 1-2 years until things settle down.

[@scottpletcher7446]

The leadership(board of directors included) should be held accountable for poor company performance. Their lack of inspiration will lead to their doom.

[@ravanpee1325]

50% of the supervisoryr board in a German stock traded company IS the Unions + shareholder the state of Lower Saxony = you can't adjust your insane wage structure in VW factories in Germany. Basically half of the workers there are useless, overpriced and arrigant

[@JohnTovar-ks8dp]

Maybe I should show up at a GM shareholder meeting & propose that executives are mostly paid in stock options that vest in 10 years after they quit. Because they are mostly milking these companies for cash.

[@shoestringsev4529]

The problem with the VW MEB platform is that it was outdated when they were still arguing about what should be included. They went for a NMC 400v and so so rapid charging speed. When the first iD3 was released we already had 800v and 350kw rapid charging EVs on the market. Even after the MEB refresh when we have newer far better gen2 LFP batteries from CATL VW stayed with 400v and NMC batteries. When you forget the importance of "innovate or die."

[@joehowe9532]

Virtually all of the legacy auto makers have looked down their noses and mocked Elon Musk and Tesla. Now Tesla is in the catbird seat with a net cash position of $32 billion and making a handsome profit on every single electric vehicle they sell, while growing the largest Charging network there is with a 99.97% running rate. Nick Collas, a highly respected auto analyst on Wall Street, projects that the only two major auto makers that may survive are Tesla and Toyota; time will tell.

[@xinceras-6542]

I'm sure Volkswagen would never do anything unethical. When have they ever?

[@rameshsnayar]

😂😂😂

[@trabink2]

This is one of your most interesting and eye-opening videos!!! I'll look more into the relationship between EV manufacturing and carbon credits... Curious how all countries deal with this... Must be related to the Paris Climate accord? Wow ...

[@thereplacementfordisplacement]

PHEVs would lead to a lot more EV miles driven than only offering EV and ICE options. The trend towards smaller motors packed with low life turbos and superchargers can all be bypassed by going to state of the art PHEVs.

[@richard--s]

Car makers in Germany have opposed heavily against EVs, maybe around 10 to 15 years ago. The media helped them to move and to keep the opinion of most people there against EVs. They really hated EVs in Germany, with a passion (Don't ask me, as them why). And most of this is still going on today in 2024.

[@FrankPouw-hp2dh]

You are wrongly informed because the German automakers were lobbying in Brussels again ice cars because they thought we are going to make a lot of money and not the other way around. The walked hand in hand with the Dutch green maffia boss Timmermans in Brussels and forgot totally that it is the costumer that is making the decision to buy what ever they want. The problem is that gouvernements are forcing costumers what to buy. Look at what’s happening in America were sloppy Joe is forcing costumers to buy evs and all of the sudden something went wrong. Any idea why?

[@sammyhernandezpinto9018]

I found your videos very neutral and well informed 👍🏻. Keep doing honesty videos. If Innovation is not a factor for Volkswagen then they shall sink

[@electricviking]

Thanks a ton

[@castletown999]

One of your best reports Sam! I wonder how the buying public is reacting to this. Could be that those waiting for an affordable EV are just not buying anything - not even an ICE car. Any data on this?

[@onederment]

I still think the ID4 is a good car. It ticks all my boxes and it's much more comfortable to drive than any other ice car... and I have had quite a few

[@JoeyBlogs007]

"China's EVs Fail in Europe; Poor Quality, No Sales! 80% of Firms Back Tariffs" Apparently.

[@jizhang75]

for instance when EU applies hight tarrif on chinese ev, as comsumer I am hearing I should be ripped off by the expensive european EV's which not as good as chines ev; instead of compete but I am forced to choose expensive one. so no thank your luxury eu made EV

[@rinconchuck]

My understanding is that in Russia, where access to western made vehicles has ended, they call Chinese cars "tofu cars" due to poor materials/cu.

[@Barry-l1x]

All car companies use Chinese parts including Tesla, one thing never mentioned is insurance groups check before you buy VW are among the lowest.

[@frankcoffey]

With German cars the cost to the consumer for parts is still way more than it should be even if they are cheap ones from China. It's a brand thing.

[@38Flyer]

You always provide absolutely interesting information in an entertaining way. Thank you from the US.

[@electricviking]

Thanks for watching!

[@johnnybeaujean]

This is not going to help sales in China which have tanked. I may keep them in the EV game for a while longer. R.I.P.

[@yves2932]

VW have made production in china self sufficient, so it doesnt matter much what happens in the german factories.

[@sabakag]

I don't know what is really going on, but as a consumer I see lots of discounts recently on both EV and ICE cars. Now you can buy Nissan Ariya, Tesla M3 and Y, Skoda Enyaq and some others for less than 40k euro (and that is before government grants).

[@profTiffin]

Good points. But the low residuals on EV are very telling. Prices on used EVs have found their level though - people seem willing to take a chance and spend £10 to £20k on a two to three year old (presumably ex-lease) EV that was £30 to £40k new

[@tonrotterdam]

That's another narrative. What the industry fails to tell here is that the low(er) residual value is the result of new EVs coming to market at a much lower price point.That, and the fact that EVs that were sold 4 years ago by US and EU manufacturers were completely tricked out with all option packages added to the car.

[@SigFigNewton]

International Energy Agency doesn’t expect depreciation rates between gas and EV to be very different in the long run. For now, a lot of EV buyers are people who want the newest best thing. The acceleration and quiet and ability to fill up at home that come with an EV… but also the range of the *newest* EVs.

[@SigFigNewton]

Part of it is waiting for the public to figure out that if the warranty on the battery is about to run out, that doesn’t mean that the battery is likely to fail, just that it’s likely to soon have a range below 75% or so of the initial range when the auto was new.

[@tonrotterdam]

@@SigFigNewton There’s tons of evidence that is not the case. It’s FUD spread by the fossil fuel industry, it’s not a laptop or phone with a tiny non conditioned battery.

[@ingo_8628]

I saw VW producing exactly the number of EVs they needed, but not more, but at some point i started slowly to get trust in Herbert Diess. Well, he is History.

[@anthonydavorenDAVSnDOGS]

Hi Sam - thanks for this video. It's a damn shame about the trends on European BEVs. I can tell you from experience, after owning a first edition MG ZS BEV, for a couple of years, then trading it in on a VW ID.4 PRO 2024 (in New Zealand), that was built in Germany, that it's a much better build, handling, luxury, just about everything about the car is better than the MG. The software in the model I have is great. VW dropped the car price down to NZD $60K, that is when I made the move to trade in the MG and I'm not looking back. I understand VW is going to introduce the ID range later this year 2024. Anthony (Northland, NZ - THU 12 SEP 2024, 04.59 hours).

[@pjotre7]

The German Nedersaksen government is the biggest shareholder with ca 12% and have a big influence in the company strategy. Pretty sure they know exactly what VW is doing?

[@ravanpee1325]

It's not the biggest shareholder but they have veto power by an own law..which is completly insane

[@S_Curves]

In the UK it’s 22% in 2024. Or £15k per car fine. Tesla are going to make a fortune on sales pooling from legacy auto.

[@N0rdman]

Sam, a couple of hours ago VW announced they annulled those employment clauses, so they are livid and protesting all over now, maybe as many as 500,000 workers will go into strike.

[@johnsmedley8843]

I really don't get why software is a problem. I drive a VW polo, it's brilliant, it's got the traditional controls of heater, fan, AC, a radio, stalks for indicators and wipers, and a dial for auto lights . That's all we need touch screens are stupid. Just a phone holder so we can navigate with Google maps. If VW can just electriy a polo, perfect.

[@zdzislawmeglicki2262]

VW, like Ford and GM, responds to the diminishing interest in BEVs, as well as to exorbitant losses stemming from the BEV development and manufacturing costs. Ford loses $40,000 on each BEV sold.

[@profTiffin]

Yes- agree; and the advent of CCP subsidised EVs is going to drive down used prices further. Also although fears for main battery life have generally proved ill founded, the other all reliability stats, including "time in the workshop" and cost per repair of EVs are proving very unfavourable compared to ICE models. So a customer may take a chance on a 2 or 3 year old EV worth $10 to $20k, but they are not going to be risking paying $30+ for a vehicle that could prove frustrating and costly to operate...

[@christianlibertarian5488]

A corporation is always supposed to focus on profits. That is why they exist. If VW is losing money on EVs, it would be fairly stupid of them to want to sell more.

[@edipopplinger2078]

Volkswagen AG's operating profit rose slightly in 2023 and totaled around 22.58 billion euros. Compared to the previous year, this represented an increase of around two percent. The operating profit margin fell by almost one percentage point due to the significantly higher increase in sales.

[@ravanpee1325]

Volkswagen AG (VW, Audi, Seat, Skoda, Porsche, Bugatti etc) =/ Volkswagen brand

[@yingxuk]

In China the ID.UNYX and Audi Q4 e-tron have similar prices as the Xpeng Mona 03. But what is different: VW makes a profit and all electric startups in China not.

[@bagheera32]

If VW makes a profit why is their CEO neevous, closing factories ?

[@edipopplinger2078]

@@bagheera32 because they look at the market and react, the Chinese produce but don't sell

[@MichaelFeng-k6u]

I am looking forward to seeing how you like your new Xpeng.

[@martinv.352]

Yes. One of the three working shifts in the Zwickau factory has been removed. Delivery time of ID.3 is 5 months, of Skoda Enyaq is 18 months. All plans refer to european fleet CO2 limits which are already achieved in 2024, but not in 2025. So selling EV is shifted to 2025. Even the thrifty 1.0 and 1.2 liters combustion engines are temporarily stopped at the beginning of 2024. It looks like VW must pay a penalty if the limit is exceeded...

[@hiteshshettyy]

Great info, is it sensible to buy a VW car in India at the moment?

[@philgreen2932]

Well my nz id4 pro at $52k is so much better than any Chinese. But they did try to sell last October for $nz79k. Software seems fine. At least the lane keeping works and doesn't beep at you all the time. My advice stick to European and American. Don't fall for Chinese is better crap. But no doubt they will improve.

[@fakamada]

The thing is; they have a stick on their hands, both ends covered with shit. They simply lost Chinese market to local brands. This caused them to bleed a lot. To compete there, they need BEVs. If they invest on BEVs, they will not succeed on other markets. If they don't, they will fail on Chinese market. This story smells like a huge failure in either way.

[@andrewlongden-thurgood7139]

If this was true why are there all these pics of EV cars sat at ports not wanted, why are they discounting them and having 0% offers to shift them and why are dealers forced to register them after a period if they don’t sell?

[@johnmoulton9728]

Thank you Sam for keep tell us the truth

[@ThomasHalways]

The main issue here is the safety of the Li-Ion batteries. Their random fire can break out at any time, day or nicht, and they are impossible to extinguish. People know that meanwhile and are afraid. Furthermore, in Europe majority of City residents live in condos. They have no charging options for these cars. All that comes at a higher purchasing price, and an outright dramatic depreciation. Even here in California, I would not touch EV with a hot-rod. Hybrid, yes, of course, but the battery operated car seems not to be a viable option in many cases.

[@kaziez]

The problem in Ireland is the charging network is awful so it makes it hard to go electric .

[@santostv.]

In my country new car sales are 80% from business owners because of tax benefits with buying a ev ,adoption is quite high for European standards and we like brand so why buy a a cheap car when you can afford a premium brand with subsidies. Regular people are buying Peugeot,Renault meanwhile businessmen are buying bmw and Mercedes benz In ev’s Tesla is number 1 but this August bmw sold more idk if means anything

[@philiptaylor7902]

Things are changing at Stellantis, in the UK they just announced their new Vauxhall (Opel) Frontera at price parity between ICE & BEV.

[@stoapfalzrunden4150]

Yeah, in the UK. In germany they want us to pay over 4000 € more for the BEV. Stellantis sucks. :/

[@peterbroad1772]

But the product is pretty crappy in that case. Small and poor range. Something usable and equivalent they aren't.

[@snookmeister55]

Stellantis' Jeep was the first legacy brand to fold in China. Their inventory is sky high in the USA. Just months ago Tavares bragged about their profit margin but he now predicts a bloodbath. They're in serious trouble.

[@plinble]

Isn't Germany putting all their hopes in zero carbon liquid fuels?

[@yves2932]

Absolutely not. Majority of politics are still rushing EV adaption and car companies are commited, for better or worse. They will continue selling traditional cars for some while, but its clearly dead end.

[@frankcoffey]

They might be but consumers won't fall for it. "Something by the liter/gallon" is a trap and we know it.

[@rays2506]

The VW debt load is $190B. How much of that debt is from auto loans to private buyers to enable them to purchase their VW cars?

[@ravanpee1325]

Basically everything, so it's not a problem. The real problem is the wage structure in German VW factories..

[@mickydee26]

Sam, the MG ZS EV excite is 65% more than their ICE excite. Apple V Apple

[@stevewhitmill2037]

Great, Sam ; as always.

[@Harrybollox]

How many car companies over the last 80 years or so turned to dust by blinkered incompetent bickering management and power addicted unions , not to mention over spending governments pushing up inflation so much that the product becomes un competitive. This is not a new perfect storm

[@markevans5892]

Just for clarity, the Vauxhall Corsa EV and ICE are on sale at the same price.

[@5nowChain5]

Unless they make them with battery packs that can be swapped out for next generation higher capacity cells, then they are not going to get a rush of buyers looking for long term investment in such expensive cars.

[@OzdeDemiraz]

Ww couldn’t comply with the Bazaar demands and fell behind it; guess their strategy was no good

[@chrisheath2637]

A few months ago, I thought the only way VW ( and other Legacy) could survive , would be to team up with a Chinese company (or two). Today, I saw a "VW" delivery van. On the back was the "SAIC" logo. Legacy are gone....badges only....

[@litestuffllc7249]

Reality will set in regarding BEV sales; when there are no more government subsidies for them. The subsidies were never warranted as current BEVs are not very green; Germany has ended subsidies for BEVs and the US has cut them; China will continue to be pressured to end theirs as they have been dumping vehicles under cost not just in China but also other markets. When all subsiidies are over; BEV sales will be set back. In Germany sales of BEVs fell by 30% thus far. BEVs need to get their act in order; incoporate new battery tech that doesn't self ignite; and get prices compeditive without the CCP or anyone subsidising.

[@nicholasglade4572]

The US is protecting over paid auto union workers and bad auto company management with the 100% tariffs. So since I can't buy a car from companies like Xpeng, I refuse to buy an over priced inferior car and just stay with my old car. I suspect many other people will refuse to buy overpriced cars too.

[@SimonFranck100]

They should first cut the salaries of the C-suite that messed up

[@panjacek6674]

can we get the links of the quoted publications?

[@midnight4109]

I don't know if this is entirely intentional but there is a reality to it. Their EV models are not a compelling choice and a bit pricey.

[@dutchbavarian]

The issue is that the general expectation is that we will probably see a cost/profit turnaround for BEVs in 2025. Those that are prepared, may survive. Others will fail. Probably VW just as Toyota. As they just do not transition.

[@RichardHilditch]

In the UK the ZEV mandate will hurt these manufacturers in 2924 according to other BEV car reviewers.

[@gerrybaker7155]

you just said 2 to 3 Billion Euros is equal to 4 Billion USD. Incorrect. 3 Billion Euros equals 3.3 Billion USD at today's exchange rate. 2 Billion Eu = 2.2 Billion USD

[@tyskigolf]

Canada Q2 set a new record for BEV and PHEV sales at 12.9%

[@ggusta1]

VW are miserably expensive to own. People don't like that.

[@Max86421]

There are now more electric cars than gas cars on Norway’s roads 🔥

[@johnnyel]

Excellent insight and commentary.

[@ligmasugma3650]

If electric charging was faster and came with a life time warranty with more range of travel, I will buy EVs for life. Ez Pz.

[@dennisbouma7606]

VW is fighting climate change 🤡👍

[@surferdude4487]

A business that will not see beyond the next quarter is going to fail.

[@AllanRich1]

They have capacity to produce 9-10 million cars a year. They employ 675000 people. They have 136 factories. Nearly all of it is dedicated to ICE. When ever they sell an EV they don’t sell a ICE vehicle. Think of what it would cost for VW to stop producing ICE - They price the ID range to push customers to ICE

[@StartledPancake]

As can be seen from Bjorns channel the main problem with VW EVs isnt software, its battery degradation which is higher than comparable cars.

[@jogo798]

Vw contracts other battery makers like other car makers, so its a core software problem.

[@GallAnonim-jx2cz]

In China best selling are not EVs but PHEVs.... Smart companies like BYD offer every model in both EV and PHEV version in SAME PRICE.

[@Nachtwandler100]

The video is somewhat misleading. The statement that BMW has a lower price difference compared to its combustion engine models as a percentage than vehicles from VW or Stelantis is correct. To conclude from this that if BMW can do it, then VW can do it too is simply wrong. Here is a small list that illustrates Elektric Viking's error in reasoning: BMW: The BMW iX3 (electric SUV) costs around €68,000, while the comparable combustion engine, the BMW X3, is around €55,000. This corresponds to a price difference of €13,000 or around 23%. The iX3 has a battery size of 80 kW. Mercedes: The Mercedes EQC (electric) costs around €72,000, while the comparable GLC with a combustion engine starts at around €57,000. The price difference here is around €15,000 or 26%, with a battery size of 80 kWh. Opel: The price of the Opel Corsa-E (electric) is around €37,000, while the Corsa with a gasoline engine starts at around €25,000. This results in a difference of €12,000, which corresponds to around 48%. The Corsa-E has a battery size of 50 kWh. VW: The VW ID.3 (electric) starts at around €40,000, while the comparable Golf TSI costs around €30,000, a price difference of €10,000 or 33%. The ID.3 has a battery capacity of 58 kWh. As the battery is the most expensive part of the electric car, the battery size determines the price difference compared to the combustion engine vehicle. As premium vehicles have a higher margin, it is easier to hide additional costs for these vehicles. In addition, VW and Opel customers are much more price-sensitive than BMW or Mercedes customers. If VW were to lower prices, the losses per car would increase drastically. It should be clear to everyone by now that VW and most others are making losses with e-cars even at these high prices. The opinion that e-cars could be brought into the profit zone with larger quantities shows a fundamental problem in understanding the electric viking. Batteries are basically bought-in parts for most manufacturers. If more cars are produced, this does not make the parts significantly cheaper. In fact, the opposite can happen. If I want to buy a lot and the market is a seller's market, then I pay even more or don't get the quantities I want. This is exactly what has happened to some manufacturers several times in recent years. Batteries are energy- and raw material-intensive products. There is no guarantee that the balance of savings from the production of higher quantities and higher expenses for the procurement of raw materials will lead to lower prices. This may or may not be the case. There are basically four ways out of this dilemma. 1. investors (Musk fanboys) finance the resulting losses. 2) I make massive savings on all other costs (distribution, R&D, quality, service) so that the overall costs remain bearable for my customers despite the expensive batteries. 3. the state gives me a massive helping hand. 4) I have the existing old production and the new e-cars cross-subsidized. Strategy 2 (cheap, cheap) is what VW tried with the ID.3 and failed miserably. Strategy 3 (the state pours money into the industry) has become impossible for Germany due to the failed energy transition and the influx of refugees. Germany simply no longer has the money. For VW, therefore, only strategy 4 (cross-subsidization) remains. To prevent e-cars from bleeding VW dry, VW must massively increase the profit margins of combustion vehicles and at the same time reduce the bleeding. That's the point. VW, nor any other European manufacturer, can pursue an all-in strategy as suggested by Electric Viking. VW came closest and now has to back down.

[@FabioCapela]

Meanwhile, with the help of Chinese EV makers the developing world is quickly adopting EVs; BEV market share is already at roughly 25% in Costa Rica and 15% in Uruguay, and is growing fast in many other developing countries too, with the vast majority of EVs sold being Chinese. Every day the incumbent carmakers, including VW, delay the release of affordable EVs is a day more the Chinese have to take over the global market with their own affordable EVs.