Auto Company Hall Of Shame Adds New Members
Originally published on TeslaMondo.
The latest MPG masseuse is Mitsubishi. It admits it fudged fuel economy numbers on some cars. So here’s a quick cheat sheet:
Hyundai/Kia lied to us, paid the speeding ticket, drove away like nothing happened.
Ford lied to us, paid the speeding ticket, drove away like nothing happened.
Audi/VW lied to us, will pay the speeding ticket, drive away like nothing happened.
Mitsubishi lied to us, will pay the speeding ticket, drive away like nothing happened. This is the second time in recent years the company trampled the truth. The first time involved hiding defects in company locker rooms. Remember that scandal? Probably not. You see? Automakers survive and move on. They assume, correctly, that we expect scumminess in the auto business.
What do each of these oopsies have in common? Failure to admit failure. Specifically, failure in engineering.
More failure brewing today: BMWs i-team leaders have jumped ship amid falling sales figures. Yes, the core team responsible for the i3 and i8 has turned its back on mother Germany and joined a Chinese EV effort instead. This underlines Germany’s failure to compete in recent years with you-know-whom.
Here’s some irony:
TeslaMondo has been emailing BMW, Audi, Land Rover, Mercedes and Jaguar dealerships under the guise of a potential customer. The email reads like this: “My lease is up next month. Leaning toward Tesla this time. Talk me out of it!” This could have made an interesting blog post, yes?
Unfortunately, almost everyone chickened out. Of the 30 emails sent, 29 salesmen dodged the challenge, instead asking for a face-to-face meeting or phone call to discuss. Only one salesman actually stepped up to the plate and swung the bat. Here’s his email:
TeslaMondo congratulates him for at least trying. In fact, he’s trying harder than all of Germany.
Reprinted with permission.
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