Volkswagen To Go From 'Clean Diesel' Pusher to 'Barely Any Diesel' Brand: CEO

It won’t come as a surprise that Volkswagen’s U.S. arm is eager to put all that happy-go-lucky “clean diesel” stuff behind it.

Once the diesel emissions scandal sinks from the headlines like the Deepwater Horizon, the automaker plans to head in a different direction stateside, Automotive News reports, and oil burners won’t be a big part of it.

Volkswagen of America CEO Hinrich Woebcken told the publication that the Volkswagen landscape will soon look far different, and the brand’s huge diesel push is, for all intents and purposes, stone cold dead.

“We are not stopping diesel,” Woebcken said. “Wherever diesel makes sense as a package to the car, we’ll continue. But in reality, we have to accept that the high percentage of diesels that we had before will not come back again.”

Volkswagen’s TDI models rode a wave of publicity and good press due to their power, exceptional mileage and supposed green virtues. That reputation now lies in pieces, just like the 2.0-liter TDI models will be once Volkswagen buys them back.

If the automaker gets federal approval to sell them, TDI models will continue in the lineup from 2017 to 2019, Woebcken said, adding that he expects tighter regulations after that date. With the lead-up to the diesel buyback underway, the company hasn’t sought regulatory permission to restart sales. Then-new 2015 models were sidelined by the scandal, and Volkswagen never received the go-ahead for its 2016 TDI vehicles.

Volkswagen’s American future lies in crossovers and all-wheel drive, the CEO claims, and that’s where the company’s focus will be. The start of the potentially lucrative (it hopes) utility push begins with the 2017 Golf Alltrack wagon this fall, and continues with the introduction of a new midsize crossover next spring, as well as a new, longer Tiguan next summer.

Both crossovers will be priced competitively, Woebcken said.