VW chairman shifts focus from scandal to future vision
Automatic parking,
LAS VEGAS human machine interface, autonomous driving.
Those seductive future-tech words flashed across the screen at the beginning of Volkswagen’s Consumer Electronics Show kickoff keynote Tuesday. And while they were eventually addressed, first there was another little phrase to consider: emissions scandal.
Wisely, VW chairman Herbert Diess dove right in, noting that while the venerable German automaker is proud of its 60-year history in the U.S., “the current emissions issue is certainly nothing to be proud of. We disappointed our customers and the American people, for which I apologize.”
Diess went on to say that the company is working to fix the 11 million diesel cars that were equipped with technology that masked pollutants that otherwise would have caused drivers to fail emissions tests. He said so far 8.5 million cars in Europe have undergone repair, but that the 500,000 U.S. cars at issue would need to be tackled after VW confers with EPA and CARB officials.
Diess said the company was bent on “creating a different and better company,” specifically one focused on building “intuitive transportation devices that can serve as a second home on wheels if you will.”
With that, he trotted out two cars. The first was VW’s new eGolf Touch, whose infotainment system is anchored to an appcentric screen that responds to hand gestures made hear the screen as well as voice commands. That feature will be available in a range of VW models within 12 months.
The next car was more of a show-stopper. Introduced to archival video footage of VW’s iconic Microbus of the ’60s, the BUDD-e is meant to be a 21stcentury version of the Bus. Its floor-mounted batteries provide ample interior space, while a promised 280-mile range makes road trips a reality.
BUDD-e “could be a reality by the end of the decade,” Diess said.
Partnerships with a range of other companies are key to making the connected car a reality. To that end, he welcomed executives from LG electronics (Internet of Things connectivity) and Door Bird (a German manufacturer of connected door bells) and made note of the company’s recent purchase (along with other German automakers) of 3D map-making company HERE.