Diesel Engines news **Sales on Rise in US (page 1)**
#1
Safety Car
Thread Starter
Diesel Engines news **Sales on Rise in US (page 1)**
The Axis of Diesel
Mercedes, GM and even Honda, are betting on a new breed of green diesels. The goal? To leave hybrids in the dust.
By Lawrence Ulrich, Fortune
POSTED: 9:18 a.m. EDT, October 4, 2006
(Fortune magazine) -- As night fell over the 24 Hours of LeMans this summer, spectators at France's prestigious endurance race detected a pattern. While competitors entered the pits to refuel, a sleek pair of Audi R10s kept stealing laps around the 13.7-kilometer track. Already the fastest cars on the course, and eerily quiet thanks to a unique emissions filter, the Audis were also proving the most fuel-efficient. When the checkered flag flew, the Audi had made history as the first diesel car to win a major international race.
Diesel isn't just changing LeMans. Thanks to technological breakthroughs, at least six automakers - starting with Mercedes on Oct. 16, Jeep in early 2007, and eventually even hybrid pioneer Honda - will be launching a fleet of New Age diesels. They promise to boost fuel economy by 25% to 40%, with huge torque and turbochargers to deliver the power American drivers crave.
Though initial models won't pass air-quality standards in five states (California and New York among them), Mercedes has announced three 2008 SUVs that will achieve 50-state standards. Honda, VW, and GM are close behind. How big is the market? J.D. Power estimates that diesel sales will triple to 9% of the U.S. market by 2013, compared with a projected hybrid share of 5%.
While a diesel may have won LeMans, winning over American consumers won't be easy. "[Toyota's] success has been to put the idea in consumers' minds that hybrids are the only solution, but that's wrong," says clean-diesel proponent Carlos Ghosn, the CEO of Renault and Nissan. Though half the new cars in Europe have diesel engines (credit $6-a-gallon gas and tax subsidies), most Americans still associate the word with soot-spewing, bone-rattling specimens from the '70s. "People ask why we don't just bring them over, but it's a challenge," says Frank Klegon, chief of Chrysler Group's global product development. While hybrids are seen as cutting-edge, "with diesels, it's 'Well, those have been around for 100 years.' "
More than 100, actually. Bavarian Rudolf Diesel patented his groundbreaking engine in 1892. While a gasoline engine squeezes gas and air together, a diesel compresses only air, at high pressures, creating so much heat that added fuel ignites without a spark. (Diesel contains more energy than gasoline, and engines burn it more efficiently.)
Shifting America's gears
Though diesels produce fewer greenhouse gases, they make more smog-forming pollutants. Mercedes debuted the first mass-produced car model in 1936, and popularity peaked here during the early '80s, when four of five Benzes sold featured a so-called oil burner. But the era of cheap gas left most buyers oblivious to fuel economy. As emissions standards got stricter, the EPA even discussed banning diesel a decade ago, notes Margo Oge, director of the EPA's office for transportation and air quality. Except for pickups and a fringe of Volkswagen fanatics, the technology largely fell by the wayside.
Until now. The first breakthrough is that ultra-low-sulfur diesel fuel will roll out to the nation's pumps this month. The move was mandated by the EPA, whose 2009 emissions rules will hold diesels to the same standards - the world's toughest - as gasoline cars. (Environmentalists were thrilled, oil companies less so: The rollout will cost them $6 billion to $9 billion.) The new fuel eliminates 97% of sulfur, and it's also the catalyst for automakers to devise strategies to reduce the remaining pollutants.
Mercedes is furthest along. In the E 320 Blutec, a trap stores and purges smog-forming nitrogen oxides. A second filter captures particulate matter - diesel's black calling card, long linked to cancer, asthma, and other health risks. Then ammonia compounds are used to convert nitrogen oxides to water and nitrogen. What will consumers notice? It goes fast, it delivers a knockout 38 highway miles per gallon, there's no smell, and it costs just $1,000 more than the gas model, vs. Lexus's $8,000 premium for its GS hybrid sedan.
To pass the strictest air-quality rules, part two of Mercedes' plan involves adding a small tank of urea, an ammonia-like fluid that further neutralizes pollution. The EPA's Oge says that while the agency has been leery of emissions systems that require maintenance, it will back Mercedes' approach.
By the time Mercedes' 50-state diesels launch, the competition will be heated. In September, Honda - a company long associated with hybrids - announced a catalytic-converter breakthrough that requires no fluid additives, saying it will deliver 50-state models by 2009. And GM recently showed off a burly, ultra-clean V-8 diesel that should arrive around the same time. VW, Audi, Nissan, BMW, and Chrysler Group also have versions in the works.
The question is, Are Americans ready for diesel's second coming? "We've always been a proponent," says Mercedes' E-Class chief, Bart Herring. "But changing the perspective of the rest of the market will take time and effort." Honda's research showed that older Americans are more skeptical of diesel. "Younger people are more open to it," says John Watts, Honda's manager for product planning. "They're more our target of who diesel would appeal to - cars with lots of power yet low fuel consumption."
In other words, for eco-conscious buyers, the race is on.
Mercedes, GM and even Honda, are betting on a new breed of green diesels. The goal? To leave hybrids in the dust.
By Lawrence Ulrich, Fortune
POSTED: 9:18 a.m. EDT, October 4, 2006
(Fortune magazine) -- As night fell over the 24 Hours of LeMans this summer, spectators at France's prestigious endurance race detected a pattern. While competitors entered the pits to refuel, a sleek pair of Audi R10s kept stealing laps around the 13.7-kilometer track. Already the fastest cars on the course, and eerily quiet thanks to a unique emissions filter, the Audis were also proving the most fuel-efficient. When the checkered flag flew, the Audi had made history as the first diesel car to win a major international race.
Diesel isn't just changing LeMans. Thanks to technological breakthroughs, at least six automakers - starting with Mercedes on Oct. 16, Jeep in early 2007, and eventually even hybrid pioneer Honda - will be launching a fleet of New Age diesels. They promise to boost fuel economy by 25% to 40%, with huge torque and turbochargers to deliver the power American drivers crave.
Though initial models won't pass air-quality standards in five states (California and New York among them), Mercedes has announced three 2008 SUVs that will achieve 50-state standards. Honda, VW, and GM are close behind. How big is the market? J.D. Power estimates that diesel sales will triple to 9% of the U.S. market by 2013, compared with a projected hybrid share of 5%.
While a diesel may have won LeMans, winning over American consumers won't be easy. "[Toyota's] success has been to put the idea in consumers' minds that hybrids are the only solution, but that's wrong," says clean-diesel proponent Carlos Ghosn, the CEO of Renault and Nissan. Though half the new cars in Europe have diesel engines (credit $6-a-gallon gas and tax subsidies), most Americans still associate the word with soot-spewing, bone-rattling specimens from the '70s. "People ask why we don't just bring them over, but it's a challenge," says Frank Klegon, chief of Chrysler Group's global product development. While hybrids are seen as cutting-edge, "with diesels, it's 'Well, those have been around for 100 years.' "
More than 100, actually. Bavarian Rudolf Diesel patented his groundbreaking engine in 1892. While a gasoline engine squeezes gas and air together, a diesel compresses only air, at high pressures, creating so much heat that added fuel ignites without a spark. (Diesel contains more energy than gasoline, and engines burn it more efficiently.)
Shifting America's gears
Though diesels produce fewer greenhouse gases, they make more smog-forming pollutants. Mercedes debuted the first mass-produced car model in 1936, and popularity peaked here during the early '80s, when four of five Benzes sold featured a so-called oil burner. But the era of cheap gas left most buyers oblivious to fuel economy. As emissions standards got stricter, the EPA even discussed banning diesel a decade ago, notes Margo Oge, director of the EPA's office for transportation and air quality. Except for pickups and a fringe of Volkswagen fanatics, the technology largely fell by the wayside.
Until now. The first breakthrough is that ultra-low-sulfur diesel fuel will roll out to the nation's pumps this month. The move was mandated by the EPA, whose 2009 emissions rules will hold diesels to the same standards - the world's toughest - as gasoline cars. (Environmentalists were thrilled, oil companies less so: The rollout will cost them $6 billion to $9 billion.) The new fuel eliminates 97% of sulfur, and it's also the catalyst for automakers to devise strategies to reduce the remaining pollutants.
Mercedes is furthest along. In the E 320 Blutec, a trap stores and purges smog-forming nitrogen oxides. A second filter captures particulate matter - diesel's black calling card, long linked to cancer, asthma, and other health risks. Then ammonia compounds are used to convert nitrogen oxides to water and nitrogen. What will consumers notice? It goes fast, it delivers a knockout 38 highway miles per gallon, there's no smell, and it costs just $1,000 more than the gas model, vs. Lexus's $8,000 premium for its GS hybrid sedan.
To pass the strictest air-quality rules, part two of Mercedes' plan involves adding a small tank of urea, an ammonia-like fluid that further neutralizes pollution. The EPA's Oge says that while the agency has been leery of emissions systems that require maintenance, it will back Mercedes' approach.
By the time Mercedes' 50-state diesels launch, the competition will be heated. In September, Honda - a company long associated with hybrids - announced a catalytic-converter breakthrough that requires no fluid additives, saying it will deliver 50-state models by 2009. And GM recently showed off a burly, ultra-clean V-8 diesel that should arrive around the same time. VW, Audi, Nissan, BMW, and Chrysler Group also have versions in the works.
The question is, Are Americans ready for diesel's second coming? "We've always been a proponent," says Mercedes' E-Class chief, Bart Herring. "But changing the perspective of the rest of the market will take time and effort." Honda's research showed that older Americans are more skeptical of diesel. "Younger people are more open to it," says John Watts, Honda's manager for product planning. "They're more our target of who diesel would appeal to - cars with lots of power yet low fuel consumption."
In other words, for eco-conscious buyers, the race is on.
#2
Senior Moderator
It's interesting how $60/barrel of oil has made automakers gauge consumer wants / needs. At first, I thought of electric cars as the 'car of the future'. So to bridge the gap between gas to electric ... why not make a hybrid? Sounds good, doesn't it? (Aside: I do think a hydrogen car would be the ultimate auto fuel ... same as what the sun uses ... and the 'pollution' would be water!)
But it seems some have thought of an already existing product (ie diesel) and make it better. Seems like it might be the smarter (and definitely cheaper) way to go. We'll see how things pan out but it seems many car makers are going to give the diesel route a shot. It works well in Europe ... why not here in North America?
I want to see how Japan adopts diesel instead of hybrids. Japanese people love to buy the latest and greatest in technology. I wonder if their pocketbooks will allow them to continue to gobble up hybrids when cheap diesel is available (and they won't cover their white cars in soot!)
But it seems some have thought of an already existing product (ie diesel) and make it better. Seems like it might be the smarter (and definitely cheaper) way to go. We'll see how things pan out but it seems many car makers are going to give the diesel route a shot. It works well in Europe ... why not here in North America?
I want to see how Japan adopts diesel instead of hybrids. Japanese people love to buy the latest and greatest in technology. I wonder if their pocketbooks will allow them to continue to gobble up hybrids when cheap diesel is available (and they won't cover their white cars in soot!)
#3
Race Director
I think the buy in by consumers is under estimated by this writer. In the summer of 08 when gas is $4 a gallon, Joe Bloe consumer could care less what's under the hood when the sticker says 40 MPG and more than willing to pony up the extra $1K for a diesel over the gas version. The problem will be supply - no one, including Honda/BMW/MB, are willing to invest in diesel engine plants until the demand is there - everyone will be caught short handed in the short term.
#4
Axis of diesel...that has a nice ring to it.
#5
"[Toyota's] success has been to put the idea in consumers' minds that hybrids are the only solution, but that's wrong," says clean-diesel proponent Carlos Ghosn
Mercedes is furthest along. In the E 320 Blutec, a trap stores and purges smog-forming nitrogen oxides. A second filter captures particulate matter
#6
Originally Posted by derrick
It's interesting how $60/barrel of oil has made automakers gauge consumer wants / needs. At first, I thought of electric cars as the 'car of the future'. So to bridge the gap between gas to electric ... why not make a hybrid? Sounds good, doesn't it? (Aside: I do think a hydrogen car would be the ultimate auto fuel ... same as what the sun uses ... and the 'pollution' would be water!)
But it seems some have thought of an already existing product (ie diesel) and make it better. Seems like it might be the smarter (and definitely cheaper) way to go. We'll see how things pan out but it seems many car makers are going to give the diesel route a shot. It works well in Europe ... why not here in North America?
I want to see how Japan adopts diesel instead of hybrids. Japanese people love to buy the latest and greatest in technology. I wonder if their pocketbooks will allow them to continue to gobble up hybrids when cheap diesel is available (and they won't cover their white cars in soot!)
But it seems some have thought of an already existing product (ie diesel) and make it better. Seems like it might be the smarter (and definitely cheaper) way to go. We'll see how things pan out but it seems many car makers are going to give the diesel route a shot. It works well in Europe ... why not here in North America?
I want to see how Japan adopts diesel instead of hybrids. Japanese people love to buy the latest and greatest in technology. I wonder if their pocketbooks will allow them to continue to gobble up hybrids when cheap diesel is available (and they won't cover their white cars in soot!)
Originally Posted by biker
Joe Bloe consumer could care less what's under the hood when the sticker says 40 MPG and more than willing to pony up the extra $1K for a diesel over the gas version.
Right now, owning a car, a diesel is bullet proof where hybrids have a ten year warranty and then you are on your own.
But I'm sure with battery and hybrid tech advancement that will change at the rate Toyota and Honda are pushing(Toyota offering hybrid on every model in 3 years).
Diesel hybrids have always made the most sense to me anyways as far as hybrid.
Hydrogen makes the most sense to me as far as a real elimination of outside oil supply and the government can't get their fingers into it where they can with sugarcane or other commodities.
#7
Race Director
Originally Posted by heyitsme
Diesel is no cheaper an option than hybrid. $1000 option, yea right, maybe $3500+ option as the engine gets more advanced. Try buying a golf tdi for 1k more than a base gas engine model without it meeting 50 state emissions.
.
.
In Europe most of the time the diesel option is around $1K over a similar gas model - we'll see which way diesel will be marketed in the US. Compared to a fairly complex DI gas engine, a diesel can't be that much more to build (surely less than 1K diff). Maybe compared to some cheap pushrod GM a diesel would be expensive but generally the price diff is not that high.
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#8
Safety Car
Thread Starter
Diesel on the Rise
European automakers have always been a bit skeptical in offering their diesel models in the United States. However, with the price of diesel hitting a dramatic decline, U.S. sales of diesel-powered vehicles are going strong. Volkswagen dealers across the nation are saying that they can’t get enough of the Jetta TDI sedan and station wagon.
According to AAA, the average nationwide price for a gallon of diesel was $2.60, reports Automotive News. When compared to the price of regular unleaded gasoline at $2.67, diesel isn’t looking all that bad. A year ago, diesel prices hit a whopping $4.85 a gallon while scaring the pants off of BMW, Mercedes-Benz, Audi and VW - all who sell 50-state diesel models in the United States.
Volkswagen said that it has sold 3,862 diesel Jettas in May, up from 2,253 in April.
“Things have changed, and diesel Jettas are moving. I want more,” says Casey Gunther, owner of two Volkswagen stores in Fort Lauderdale, Fla.
With that in mind - would you guys consider buying a Euro-diesel model? Have your say in the poll below.
#9
Senior Moderator
it would be nice if we would get more models here with Diesel as a option. I like it much better than this Hybrid crap
#10
Senior Moderator
I was all set to buy the diesel TSX until they canceled it.
I get a kick out of this commercial:
<object width="560" height="340"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/JXK63kvUi6U&hl=en&fs=1&"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/JXK63kvUi6U&hl=en&fs=1&" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="560" height="340"></embed></object>
I get a kick out of this commercial:
<object width="560" height="340"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/JXK63kvUi6U&hl=en&fs=1&"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/JXK63kvUi6U&hl=en&fs=1&" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="560" height="340"></embed></object>
#11
Race Director
^ good one. I didn't know Jetta sales were so high for the diesel - I mean those are like European ratios. I guess people who buy a Jetta get it. It would be interesting to see the break down for BMW and the E-class.
#12
I spend 2 much time here
i would def consider diesel for my next vehicle...pretty sad how behind the 8-ball we are here in the US about diesel engines.
on a side note i read this a couple weeks ago and was pretty shocked by it
http://www.autoblog.com/2009/06/02/r...-equal-that-o/
on a side note i read this a couple weeks ago and was pretty shocked by it
http://www.autoblog.com/2009/06/02/r...-equal-that-o/
#13
Race Director
^ that's the biggest problem with trying to talk sense with the tree huggers - they keep putting onerous restrictions on cars when cars make up less and less of the total pollution problem. Diesels were virtually outlawed in CA, when models with Euro level emissions would have helped the overall polution problems.
#14
Senior Moderator
The car companies are at least attempting to re-educate the public on diesels. I've seen a VW commercial a couple of times now that just says the new diesels are not the old dirty ones of the past. They need to air it more often and try to get people to reconsider them. And we need more choices from more brands. Right now I think the only ones offering diesels in cars (not trucks) are VW, Audi, BMW, and Mercedes. We need some from the mainstream brands, too.
#16
I spend 2 much time here
^ that's the biggest problem with trying to talk sense with the tree huggers - they keep putting onerous restrictions on cars when cars make up less and less of the total pollution problem. Diesels were virtually outlawed in CA, when models with Euro level emissions would have helped the overall polution problems.
#17
The sizzle in the Steak
Clean diesels seeing strong U.S. sales
http://www.leftlanenews.com/clean-di...tml#more-19045
Diesel-powered vehicles have long had a negative stereotype here in the United States, but the latest crop of European clean diesels – along with lower diesel prices – is starting to sway American buyers. Diesel sales have increased significantly so far this year, with more sales success expected.
Volkswagen’s Jetta TDI is leading the way with some impressive sales figures. Jetta TDI sales totaled 3,862 units last month, up from 2,253 sales in April. Moreover, about 36 percent of all Jetta sales are of the TDI clean diesel variety.
“We would expect equal or higher sales of diesels this month,” a VW spokesman told Autoweek.
The Jetta TDI SportWagen is seeing an even higher take rate, with about 50 percent of all buyers opting for the diesel option.
Mercedes-Benz is seeing similar success with its clean diesel SUV offerings. Through the first five months of the year, the diesel-powered ML has notched 8,242 sales, or about 16.5 percent of all ML sales. The diesel take rate on the larger GL SUV is even higher, with nearly 22 percent of buyers going for the diesel option.
While greater acceptance of clean diesel technology is likely a key factor in the sales increase, lower diesel prices is no doubt also a part of the mix. Last year when gas topped $4 a gallon, diesel fuel checked in with a wallet-busting price of $4.85 per gallon. However, diesel prices now average $2.60 per gallon, 7 cents less than regular gas. With diesel prices not expected to surpass gas prices for several more months, clean diesels might finally be able to get a foothold in the U.S. market.
Volkswagen’s Jetta TDI is leading the way with some impressive sales figures. Jetta TDI sales totaled 3,862 units last month, up from 2,253 sales in April. Moreover, about 36 percent of all Jetta sales are of the TDI clean diesel variety.
“We would expect equal or higher sales of diesels this month,” a VW spokesman told Autoweek.
The Jetta TDI SportWagen is seeing an even higher take rate, with about 50 percent of all buyers opting for the diesel option.
Mercedes-Benz is seeing similar success with its clean diesel SUV offerings. Through the first five months of the year, the diesel-powered ML has notched 8,242 sales, or about 16.5 percent of all ML sales. The diesel take rate on the larger GL SUV is even higher, with nearly 22 percent of buyers going for the diesel option.
While greater acceptance of clean diesel technology is likely a key factor in the sales increase, lower diesel prices is no doubt also a part of the mix. Last year when gas topped $4 a gallon, diesel fuel checked in with a wallet-busting price of $4.85 per gallon. However, diesel prices now average $2.60 per gallon, 7 cents less than regular gas. With diesel prices not expected to surpass gas prices for several more months, clean diesels might finally be able to get a foothold in the U.S. market.
#19
The sizzle in the Steak
#20
Burning Brakes
I like the Jetta TDI too. Then there's this:
http://www.edmunds.com/apps/vdpconta...7/pageNumber=1
The Golf diesel will be here next year and hopefully the GDI will follow..
http://www.edmunds.com/apps/vdpconta...7/pageNumber=1
The Golf diesel will be here next year and hopefully the GDI will follow..
#22
E85 is averaging about $0.45 less than regular over here.... just FYI. Hardly ever see any diesel stations here anymore, so
#23
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My car decision making process would immediately end and I would be purchasing a diesel TSX if it were available. I guess Honda doesn't see the value in introducing a diesel that is already made in Europe, with some extra emissions equipment. I wish they'd at least test the market. From the looks of it, diesel sales are quite strong, and Honda is missing out on a definite opportunity here.
#25
trill recognize trill
i fuckin love my Jetta TDI, the mileage is ridiculous, and the torque is crazy for something so efficient! its an overall fun car to drive. i still don't get how the price of diesel fluctuates the way it does
#26
Race Director
It may have been a one time shortage. I know there was a spike in late 07 early 08 when low sulphur diesel was introduced. It takes a time (and money) to make such a large change in the distilation process. The actual cost to make diesel is virtually the same as gasoline so the only reason for the fluctuation is availability. If diesels do take off in large numbers (or the economy comes back strong, spurring trucking) suddenly there could be some shortage induced price fluctuations. Diesel's use in trucks and other large vehicles is much more prevelant than in cars - car use is so little that it makes little difference in overall use of the stuff.
#27
Suzuka Master
I have a buddy in Amsterdam with a diesel 5 series BMW. That thing hauls ass and sounds sweet! Then again, almost everything is diesel over there.
#28
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Diesel is used by commercial companies much more so than gasoline is. When trucking, shipping, and other commercial activities pick up, so the price of diesel rises. There is also a much, much smaller reserve amount of diesel sitting around (because no refineries are being built) so the capacity to absorb demand fluctuation is much smaller hence the rapid price swings.
Everything in Europe is diesel because they tax the crap out of gasoline.
Everything in Europe is diesel because they tax the crap out of gasoline.
#29
Race Director
#30
The sizzle in the Steak
#33
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That's the truth. I'd say probably 1 in 3 cars are diesel at the very least, and that's being conservative. Most of the cars I've seen here are diesel. It's funny to get passed on the autobahn by diesel Mercedes doing 180km/h that sounds like a truck.
#34
Fahrvergnügen'd
I keep talking about it but it's not like Audi's doing anything to help me ... The 3.0TDi still isn't in the A5/A4 yet in the US.
#36
6G TLX-S
^^^^^ Only from the outside. Everyone sitting inside that German sedan won't hear a wimp thanks to the thick-ass cabin insulation.
#38
The sizzle in the Steak
VW dispels diesel myths online
VW dispels diesel myths online
View the debunking diesel videos and discover the results at www.vwtruthanddare.com.
Okay, it’s 8:43 a.m. Time to get something in the can—a carryover term from the days when film was king. Today it’s all digital, but it can still look like film. A production crew of 50-plus gathers at the intersection of two 10,000-foot runways on the decommissioned El Toro Marine Air Station in Irvine, California.
Today’s mission: document three concepts that debunk the myth of diesel engines as sluggish, unreliable and dirty. One involves a drag race and a skid pad test between a Jetta TDI® and a Toyota® Prius; one involves a Volkswagen Golf TDI in a meat-locker-deep-freeze-start-up test; and one determines which vehicle makes the cleanest coffee—a Touareg 2 TDI or a 1972 Mercedes-Benz® 240 Diesel.
“We decided to take these myths on directly,” said Brian Thomas, General Manager of Brand Marketing for Volkswagen. “If we were to decide to dispel the myth that clean diesel was dirty, what if we took a coffee filter and placed it over the exhaust of an old-school diesel and a clean diesel and compared the two? Which would be cleaner?”
What if? We’re not telling. This article offers a thin life slice of how Volkswagen and its advertising agency, Crispin Porter + Bogusky (CP+B), created them.
“We had 20 ideas and whittled them down to the ones we thought were most compelling for Volkswagen regarding clean diesel,” says Rob Rolfe of CP+B.
“We felt that showcasing the technology was the right approach, and it’s pretty incredible.
“The pillars of the Volkswagen Brand are innovation, value and responsibility,” says Thomas. “TDI technology supports those pillars. It’s right in line with our key brand message.”
The large plot of concrete has transformed into a miniature camp with tents, tables, chairs, electric cables, audio and video equipment, grip trucks, monitors and lights—too much to describe actually. They are close to first video and the frenetic activity of the last 30 minutes winds down. “Be cool if an F-14 buzzed us right now,” someone says, looking to the sky. A mission of bygone days.
The diesel decaf scenario is now imminent—two actors in lab coats stage next to the two running vehicles. Behind them is a vista of converging runways and mountains. In front of them, a discussion begins.
“We could use duct tape,” says the property master, suggesting a means to secure the filters to the pipes. This begins a conversation on what is presently the most critical aspect of the entire project. Some other detail will replace it in a minute. That’s the nature of film—all the grandiose ideas rest on the granular details, and a successful shoot resolves them quickly.
“That’ll melt to the tailpipe,” says the assistant director (AD). His main job is to keep the shoot moving and to eliminate obstacles to its progress, so he has a vested interest in quickly arriving at a solution.
“Zip ties? Rusty wire? Rubber bands?” offers the prop master. He’s wearing this brown baseball hat with a flat bill.
Other grips adjust a giant, stretched patch of silk tied to a metal frame connected to a pair of heavy rolling stands. It filters and softens the sunlight that is the sole source of illumination for this shot. The actors pace and mutter lines. Presently, thin cloud cover helps the silk manage the sun. That’s rare, and always, always employed. Just in case, several massive arc-lamps that toss light in increments of tens of thousands of watts stand ready. If the clouds clear, they'll have to overpower the intensity of the sun, and the same giant silk will act as a diffuser for the 18,000-watt lamps, the brightness of which cannot be appreciated without searing your retinas. A quiet-running, large generator that runs on clean diesel fuel supplies all the electricity.
“Rubber bands,” says the AD. “Let’s try rubber bands.”
“Okay, but you have to take off the filter with the cars running, or else the filter will suck into the tailpipe,” says the prop master. If that detail gets missed, the shoot stops, because the engine does. That cannot happen.
Suddenly, it all gels. The AD barks: “Rolling sound, cell phones on vibrate, walkies down…and we have speed!” Speed is the director’s cue to call “Action!” He’s Neil Tardio, a veteran of comedic television commercials, race car enthusiast—and one of 60 directors considered.
“Neil hired all his car-racing buddies,” says CP+B producer Julie Vosburgh. To be clear, they are all highly proficient at their respective jobs in the film industry. You cannot fake your way through an assignment like this —so much of what is accomplished happens without instructions.
“We found the people who were most passionate about working on this project,” adds
Vosburgh.
The two actors, selected from a pool of 187 who auditioned for the part, bring to life what hundreds of people behind the lens have planned and organized for months.
“I’m after heightened reality,” says Tardio. “I want it to feel real—like a film that a real Volkswagen enthusiast would go out and make. It’s their film on steroids, basically.”
So, it’s a little “loose” in look. The camera wobbles when the actors exchange words, as if an amateur is at the helm. “The audience should relate to them and think, ‘If this was me, this is the film I’d make,’” says Tardio. “You want the actors to be funny and you want them to feel real. The audience should feel like they helped make this film.”
With the first setup underway, there's still much heavy lifting left. There's the afternoon drag race and the early-evening lateral acceleration test, where the AD will announce, "We really got to go!" as the sun rushes to touch the western horizon. The deep-freeze start-up is scheduled for the next day.
Right now, the focus of the shoot switches to a table with two coffee-makers, where two actors will compare the robustness of their respective café au diesels. The buzzing urgency returns. When you are outside for a daytime shoot, the sun sets the schedule.
On another plot of the six-square-mile airbase, a second-unit crew captures some eye-popping car-to-car footage of a Jetta TDI playing bumper tag with a chase vehicle rigged to exceed 110 mph while recording rock-still moving images.
"We're trying to keep that footage loose, too," says Tardio. "It's not going to look like a super-polished car spot, but more like a rowdy little film that an enthusiast made."
The chase vehicle is painted flat black to eliminate the possibility of reflecting its own image in the metal of the vehicle it’s shooting. A 20-foot jib arm extends from a mount on the reinforced roof, and the camera can come within inches of the subject car, driven by Jetta TDI Cup champion, Josh Hurley. Everyone on the A Team is here today.
Hurley is making his debut as a stunt driver. It’s not the same as racing. “Race-car driving is a little more neat and tidy,” says Hurley. “Here, you’re trying to position the car for the camera, and it’s a lot more aggressive, sideways and more action-looking than what’s fast. It’s a little against my instincts, but it’s great—instead of driving for the stopwatch, I’m driving for the camera lens.”
Josh offers an interesting insight after an hour or so of precision driving.
“It’s amazing how similar racing and film-making is,” says Hurley. “I was shocked at the attention to detail. It’s so many stages beyond what you would expect, and race driving is the same way.”
Okay, it’s 8:43 a.m. Time to get something in the can—a carryover term from the days when film was king. Today it’s all digital, but it can still look like film. A production crew of 50-plus gathers at the intersection of two 10,000-foot runways on the decommissioned El Toro Marine Air Station in Irvine, California.
Today’s mission: document three concepts that debunk the myth of diesel engines as sluggish, unreliable and dirty. One involves a drag race and a skid pad test between a Jetta TDI® and a Toyota® Prius; one involves a Volkswagen Golf TDI in a meat-locker-deep-freeze-start-up test; and one determines which vehicle makes the cleanest coffee—a Touareg 2 TDI or a 1972 Mercedes-Benz® 240 Diesel.
“We decided to take these myths on directly,” said Brian Thomas, General Manager of Brand Marketing for Volkswagen. “If we were to decide to dispel the myth that clean diesel was dirty, what if we took a coffee filter and placed it over the exhaust of an old-school diesel and a clean diesel and compared the two? Which would be cleaner?”
What if? We’re not telling. This article offers a thin life slice of how Volkswagen and its advertising agency, Crispin Porter + Bogusky (CP+B), created them.
“We had 20 ideas and whittled them down to the ones we thought were most compelling for Volkswagen regarding clean diesel,” says Rob Rolfe of CP+B.
“We felt that showcasing the technology was the right approach, and it’s pretty incredible.
“The pillars of the Volkswagen Brand are innovation, value and responsibility,” says Thomas. “TDI technology supports those pillars. It’s right in line with our key brand message.”
The large plot of concrete has transformed into a miniature camp with tents, tables, chairs, electric cables, audio and video equipment, grip trucks, monitors and lights—too much to describe actually. They are close to first video and the frenetic activity of the last 30 minutes winds down. “Be cool if an F-14 buzzed us right now,” someone says, looking to the sky. A mission of bygone days.
The diesel decaf scenario is now imminent—two actors in lab coats stage next to the two running vehicles. Behind them is a vista of converging runways and mountains. In front of them, a discussion begins.
“We could use duct tape,” says the property master, suggesting a means to secure the filters to the pipes. This begins a conversation on what is presently the most critical aspect of the entire project. Some other detail will replace it in a minute. That’s the nature of film—all the grandiose ideas rest on the granular details, and a successful shoot resolves them quickly.
“That’ll melt to the tailpipe,” says the assistant director (AD). His main job is to keep the shoot moving and to eliminate obstacles to its progress, so he has a vested interest in quickly arriving at a solution.
“Zip ties? Rusty wire? Rubber bands?” offers the prop master. He’s wearing this brown baseball hat with a flat bill.
Other grips adjust a giant, stretched patch of silk tied to a metal frame connected to a pair of heavy rolling stands. It filters and softens the sunlight that is the sole source of illumination for this shot. The actors pace and mutter lines. Presently, thin cloud cover helps the silk manage the sun. That’s rare, and always, always employed. Just in case, several massive arc-lamps that toss light in increments of tens of thousands of watts stand ready. If the clouds clear, they'll have to overpower the intensity of the sun, and the same giant silk will act as a diffuser for the 18,000-watt lamps, the brightness of which cannot be appreciated without searing your retinas. A quiet-running, large generator that runs on clean diesel fuel supplies all the electricity.
“Rubber bands,” says the AD. “Let’s try rubber bands.”
“Okay, but you have to take off the filter with the cars running, or else the filter will suck into the tailpipe,” says the prop master. If that detail gets missed, the shoot stops, because the engine does. That cannot happen.
Suddenly, it all gels. The AD barks: “Rolling sound, cell phones on vibrate, walkies down…and we have speed!” Speed is the director’s cue to call “Action!” He’s Neil Tardio, a veteran of comedic television commercials, race car enthusiast—and one of 60 directors considered.
“Neil hired all his car-racing buddies,” says CP+B producer Julie Vosburgh. To be clear, they are all highly proficient at their respective jobs in the film industry. You cannot fake your way through an assignment like this —so much of what is accomplished happens without instructions.
“We found the people who were most passionate about working on this project,” adds
Vosburgh.
The two actors, selected from a pool of 187 who auditioned for the part, bring to life what hundreds of people behind the lens have planned and organized for months.
“I’m after heightened reality,” says Tardio. “I want it to feel real—like a film that a real Volkswagen enthusiast would go out and make. It’s their film on steroids, basically.”
So, it’s a little “loose” in look. The camera wobbles when the actors exchange words, as if an amateur is at the helm. “The audience should relate to them and think, ‘If this was me, this is the film I’d make,’” says Tardio. “You want the actors to be funny and you want them to feel real. The audience should feel like they helped make this film.”
With the first setup underway, there's still much heavy lifting left. There's the afternoon drag race and the early-evening lateral acceleration test, where the AD will announce, "We really got to go!" as the sun rushes to touch the western horizon. The deep-freeze start-up is scheduled for the next day.
Right now, the focus of the shoot switches to a table with two coffee-makers, where two actors will compare the robustness of their respective café au diesels. The buzzing urgency returns. When you are outside for a daytime shoot, the sun sets the schedule.
On another plot of the six-square-mile airbase, a second-unit crew captures some eye-popping car-to-car footage of a Jetta TDI playing bumper tag with a chase vehicle rigged to exceed 110 mph while recording rock-still moving images.
"We're trying to keep that footage loose, too," says Tardio. "It's not going to look like a super-polished car spot, but more like a rowdy little film that an enthusiast made."
The chase vehicle is painted flat black to eliminate the possibility of reflecting its own image in the metal of the vehicle it’s shooting. A 20-foot jib arm extends from a mount on the reinforced roof, and the camera can come within inches of the subject car, driven by Jetta TDI Cup champion, Josh Hurley. Everyone on the A Team is here today.
Hurley is making his debut as a stunt driver. It’s not the same as racing. “Race-car driving is a little more neat and tidy,” says Hurley. “Here, you’re trying to position the car for the camera, and it’s a lot more aggressive, sideways and more action-looking than what’s fast. It’s a little against my instincts, but it’s great—instead of driving for the stopwatch, I’m driving for the camera lens.”
Josh offers an interesting insight after an hour or so of precision driving.
“It’s amazing how similar racing and film-making is,” says Hurley. “I was shocked at the attention to detail. It’s so many stages beyond what you would expect, and race driving is the same way.”
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6G TLX-S