VW, Audi in Canada Halting Sales of TDI Cars Following US Inquiry

Aaron Cole
by Aaron Cole

Volkswagen in Canada will suspend sales of its Volkswagen Passat, Golf, Jetta, Beetle and Audi A3 cars after the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency announced the engines in those cars had an illegal device that “cheated” emissions tests.

“We will work with our colleagues at Volkswagen of America as well as our parent company in Germany to resolve this matter in the most timely fashion,” Volkswagen Canada spokesman Thomas Tetzlaff said in a statement.

Audi Canada has also issued a stop-sale of the Audi A3 TDI, stated Audi Canada spokesman Cort Nielson. No details were available regarding Audi’s plan for continued availability of the A3 TDI.

VW hasn’t announced a timeline for fixing its cars and resuming sales. Over the weekend, VW’s CEO Martin Winterkorn apologized for the scandal.

As we’ve detailed before, Volkswagen wasn’t struggling north of the border as mightily as they are in America. VW Canada’s sales volume wasn’t as large as America’s, but its foothold was proportionately better.

The news gets worse: VW may take a hit from slowed U.S. and Canadian sales, government penalties, record stock drops (and potential investor lawsuits stemming from the losses) and potentially one of the most expensive recalls in history.

Aaron Cole
Aaron Cole

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  • VW4motion VW4motion on Sep 21, 2015

    VW is probably not the only auto maker turning off Emissions. I can see FCA scrambling to check on their emission standards. think they are second inline for diesel sales.

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    • Rpn453 Rpn453 on Sep 22, 2015

      @VW4motion I'm no Toyota owner, but I too love vehicles that selectively kill off only the dumbest members of the driving population.

  • Nick Nick on Sep 21, 2015

    This saves a lot of Canadians from making the terrible mistake of buying a VW.

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    • 87 Morgan 87 Morgan on Sep 21, 2015

      @takeship I second your sentiments, perhaps not as dire as the brand exiting stage left, but a good old fashioned BK I believe to be imminent. I would not be looking to buy VAG stock anytime soon. This has global ramifications on many levels. But then again I could be way wrong and a simple reflash does the trick and off we go to the next automotive drama.

  • Turboencabulator Turboencabulator on Sep 21, 2015

    Had a chat with VW Canada and Transport Canada at lunch to learn a bit more. VW Canada of course confirmed the stop sale. It will surprise no one that went no further than saying they are cooperating with the federal agencies. The call centrer never left the official message the higher ups got him to recite. No big surprise there. Transport Canada's lack of teeth did dissapoint. Apparently, in Canada, we have nowhere near the law the Americans have when it comes to forcing recalls. TIL. It would have to be something in the likes of wheels falling off a model that would justify a recall campaign forced by the federal. The agent was actually aware of the high failure rate on VW emissions sensor. Emissions problem beyond odd colored smoke just isn't in the priorities. Sounds they might slap VW with a few thousand dollars per car, but it's nothing like the US potential fine. Whether VWAG or VW Canada pays is not defined. Personally, I worry how much EGR VW/EPA/CEAA will want to run in the future. VW's are already VW's when it comes to reliability. What in the world are they going to have to do to make the car meet the standard with a recall fix? If the emissions fix costs relialibity (what's left anyway) and long term life, I'm no longer interested. I don't need more risks than I live with already.

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    • Lou_BC Lou_BC on Sep 22, 2015

      dal20402 - BC lower mainland has some issues. Things aren't too bad in Vancouver/GVRD because prevailing winds tend to push it up to Agassiz region. There are a lot of cities that have issues due to geography. Add temperature inversions that typically occur in the fall and you have very poor air quality. I looked it up and the worst region is "Windsor to Quebec City". Part of that is due to prevailing air currents coming up form the USA. Calgary isn't too bad. Mid pack relative to other Canadian cities. http://www.canadiangeographic.ca/magazine/mj00/alacarte.asp

  • PCP PCP on Sep 22, 2015

    Halting sales is the most stupid thing they could do right now. With all them Tea Party, Coal Rollers and Trump followers around, now is the best time ever to sell them cars like hotcakes in Murrica. Just change the ads to something like: VW - dirtier than evaaah!

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