VW's Emissions Scandal Cost Other German Automakers $5.2 Billion in U.S. Sales: Study

German cars have a reputation for precision and attention to detail. But only four years ago, they gained another reputation—as liars and cheaters when it came to emissions. It was all thanks to Volkswagen’s diesel cheating mess, and it cost not just Volkswagen, but all German automakers, billions of dollars.

According to a new working paper from economists at the University of Michigan and the University of Notre Dame and published by the National Bureau of Economic Research, Americans not only bought fewer VWs in the wake of the cheating scandal, but they bought fewer BMWs, Mercedes-Benzes, and Smarts too.

Overall, researchers found the emissions scandal cost non-VW Group German automakers $5.2 billion in decreased U.S. sales relative to what they might have expected without the scandal. read more »

Another electric car catches fire

A Hyundai Kona Electric has burst into flames in Montreal, Canada, causing substantial damage and blowing the doors off a garage, according to overseas reports.

The owner, Piero Cosentino, said the electric vehicle (EV) was not plugged in when he noticed smoke pouring out from the garage moments before the Hyundai Kona Electric went up in flames, but it is thought high summer temperatures could have played a factor.

“As soon as I saw that, I immediately turned off the breaker,” he said in an interview with CBC. “My first instinct was to go out and run outside so I did not have to open doors and feed the fire.” read more »