VW Diesel Settlement
Volkswagen has agreed to a settlement that will send $10 billion to owners. How much of that can you expect?
It’s finally happening.
Nine months after news broke that VW had been cheating on its emissions tests, violating both US federal law and the consumer’s trust, a settlement has been agreed upon. The settlement needed approval from VW, the FTC, the EPA, CARB, and probably a few other acronym-abbreviated agencies for good measure.
Here’s how it breaks down in the most basic terms:
- VW will offer to buy back or terminate existing leases on the affected cars
- VW will offer cash compensation, anywhere between $5,100 and $10,000, to the owners and lessees
- VW will pay fines and promote zero emission technology to offset their environmental impact
The total settlement cost is $14.7 billion, with $10 billion of that going to the owners.
What You Get if You Own a TDI
If you own one of the 2009-2015 2.0-liter TDIs with “defeat devices”, you’ll soon have a decision to make:
- Sell your car back to Volkswagen
- Keep your car and wait for Volkswagen’s approved fix to meet EPA standards.
If you sell your car, it will be for the September 2015 NADA trade-in value. That’s good, because it’s before all this happened.
If you keep your car, it will need to get fixed to meet EPA regulations eventually. If VW can’t figure out a satisfactory way to do that, the buy back option will still be available.
If you sold your car in a fit of rage after “dieselgate” broke out –– which would be understandable –– the settlement still covers you. You’ll have to split the payout between the owner as of September 18th, 2015 and the current owner.
There are more complete settlement details on the US District Court for the Northern District of California’s website.
Financial Compensation
Regardless of your decision, all affected TDI owners will receive cash compensation ranging from $5,100 to $10,000. Consider it a sorry for all the trouble, please don’t hate us bribe of sorts. Just how much you receive depends on factors such as your model year, location of the car, and what options you have.
The full breakdown is available from the FTC, but here’s a summary of you what you could expect. Some notes:
- We are showing the minimum values listed, so you could get more!
- Of course, we’re also not accounting for the FTC’s mileage adjustment table, so you could get less too.
- These numbers don’t include what extra options, like sunroofs, add to the value.
- These numbers are subject to change and starting in July 2016 owners will be able to visit VWCourtSettlement.com and calculate the exact amount.
Audi Owner Compensation Table
| Year | Model | Minimum Buyback | Minimum Compensation |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2015 | A3 Hatchback 4D TDI | $34,045 | $8,163 |
| 2013 | A3 Hatchback 4D TDI | $25,877 | $6,802 |
| 2012 | A3 Hatchback 4D TDI | $24,047 | $6,497 |
| 2011 | A3 Hatchback 4D TDI | $21,617 | $6,092 |
| 2010 | A3 Hatchback 4D TDI | $19,277 | $5,702 |
Volkswagen Owner Compensation Table
| Year | Model | Minimum Buyback | Minimum Compensation |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2015 | Beetle Convertible 2D TDI i4 | $31,130 | $7,677 |
| Beetle Coupe 2D TDI I4 | $28,136 | $7,178 | |
| Golf Hatchback 4D TDI | $23,586 | $6,420 | |
| Golf SportWagen 4D TDI | $25,771 | $6,784 | |
| Jetta Sedan TDI | $23,329 | $6,377 | |
| Passat Sedan 4D TDI | $29,327 | $7,377 | |
| 2014 | Beetle Convertible 2D TDI i4 | $27,947 | $7,147 |
| Beetle Coupe 2D TDI I4 | $23,807 | $6,457 | |
| Golf Hatchback 4D TDI | $23,957 | $6,482 | |
| Jetta Sedan 4D TDI I4 | $23,747 | $6,447 | |
| Jetta Sedan 4D TDI Value I4 Turbo | $22,037 | $6,162 | |
| Jetta SportWagen 4D TDI I4 | $27,557 | $7,082 | |
| Passat Sedan 4D TDI | $27,077 | $7,002 | |
| 2013 | Beetle Convertible 2D TDI i4 | $24,917 | $6,642 |
| Beetle Coupe 2D TDI I4 | $21,497 | $6,072 | |
| Golf Hatchback 2D TDI | $20,657 | $5,932 | |
| Golf Hatchback 4D TDI | $21,377 | $6,052 | |
| Jetta Sedan 4D TDI I4 | $21,647 | $6,097 | |
| Jetta SportWagen 4D TDI I4 | $24,227 | $6,527 | |
| Passat Sedan 4D TDI | $22,517 | $6,242 | |
| 2012 | Golf Hatchback 2D TDI | $19,457 | $5,732 |
| Golf Hatchback 4D TDI | $20,267 | $5,867 | |
| Jetta Sedan 4D TDI | $19,157 | $5,682 | |
| Jetta SportWagen 4D TDI | $20,747 | $5,947 | |
| Passat Sedan 4D TDI | $19,907 | $5,807 | |
| 2011 | Golf Hatchback 2D TDI | $17,657 | $5,432 |
| Golf Hatchback 4D TDI | $18,497 | $5,572 | |
| Jetta Sedan 4D TDI | $17,057 | $5,332 | |
| Jetta SportWagen 4D TDI | $19,067 | $5,667 | |
| 2010 | Golf Hatchback 2D TDI | $14,897 | $4,971 |
| Golf Hatchback 4D TDI | $15,467 | $5,067 | |
| Jetta Sedan 4D TDI | $14,027 | $4,827 | |
| Jetta Sedan 4D TDI Cup Street Edition | $15,827 | $5,127 | |
| Jetta SportWagen 4D TDI | $15,347 | $5,047 | |
| 2009 | Jetta Sedan 4D TDI | $12,437 | $4,562 |
| Jetta SportWagen 4D TDI | $13,787 | $4,787 |
If You Lease a TDI
Lessees will have the option of terminating your lease, without penalty, or hanging on to your car and waiting for a fix if and when it becomes available.
In addition, VW lessees are also eligible for a cash compensation regardless if you own, lease, sell or keep the car. Cash payments will $5,100 to $10,000. Consider this a sorry for all the trouble, please don’t hate us bribe of sorts.
What Compensation TDI Lessees Can Expect
The full breakdown is available from the FTC, but here’s a summary of you what you could expect. The values depend on the year, trim level, and location of your vehicle. These numbers are subject to change.
| Year | Model and Trim | Estimated Compensation |
|---|---|---|
| 2015 | Beetle Coupe TDI | $3,314 – $3,915 |
| Beetle Convertible TDI | $3,650 – $4,052 | |
| Golf Hatchback 4D TDI S | $3,064 – $3,364 | |
| Golf Hatchback 4D TDI SE | $3,348 – $3,689 | |
| Golf Hatchback 4D TDI SEL | $3,553 – $3,886 | |
| Golf SportWagen TDI S | $3,284 – $3,471 | |
| Golf SportWagen TDI SE | $3,528 – $3,834 | |
| Golf SportWagen TDI SEL | $3,713 – $4,008 | |
| Jetta Sedan TDI S | $3,064 – $3,446 | |
| Jetta Sedan TDI SE | $3,239 – $3,468 | |
| Jetta Sedan TDI SEL | $3,406 – $3,755 | |
| Passat Sedan TDI SE | $3,644 – $3,874 | |
| Passat Sedan TDI SEL | $4,009 – $4,019 | |
| 2014 | Beetle Coupe TDI | $3,189 – $3,434 |
| Beetle Convertible TDI | $3,537 – $3,717 | |
| Golf Hatchback 4D TDI | $3,277 – $3,462 | |
| Jetta Sedan TDI | $3,042 – $3,457 | |
| Jetta SportWagen TDI | $3,502 – $3,707 | |
| Passat Sedan TDI SE | $3,457 – $3,687 | |
| Passat Sedan TDI SEL | $3,684 – $3,694 | |
| 2013 | Beetle Coupe TDI | $2,999 – $3,234 |
| Beetle Convertible TDI | $3,284 – $3,459 | |
| Golf Hatchback2D TDI | $3,002 – $3,207 | |
| Golf Hatchback 4D TDI | $3,062 – $3,267 | |
| Jetta Sedan TDI | $3,012 – $3,272 | |
| Jetta SportWagen TDI | $3,227 – $3,424 | |
| Passat Sedan TDI SE | $3,079 – $3,302 | |
| Passat Sedan TDI SEL | $3,514 – $3,524 | |
| 2012 | Golf Hatchback2D TDI | $2,902 – $3,062 |
| Golf Hatchback 4D TDI | $2,969 – $3,157 | |
| Jetta Sedan TDI | $2,807 – $3,019 | |
| Jetta SportWagen TDI | $2,939 – $3,122 | |
| Passat Sedan TDI SE | $2,864 – $3,069 | |
| Passat Sedan TDI SEL | $3,219 – $3,229 | |
| 2011 | Jetta Sedan TDI | $2,634 – $2,807 |
| Jetta SportWagen TDI | $2,877 – $2,922 |
What’s Next?
The settlement still needs approval from the judge and here’s a look at how long that could take:
- June 28, 2016 Settlement papers filed with court
- June 30, 2016 Court status conference
- July 26, 2016 Preliminary approval court hearing
- Fall 2016 Anticipated roll out of Settlement Program
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
- Which VW's are affected?
- 475,000 2.0-liter diesel cars including the 2013-2015 Beetle, 2010-2015 Golf, 2009-2015 Jetta, and 2012-2015 Passat, along with the Audi A3 between 2010-2013 and 2015. All in the USA.
- I own a Volkswagen with a 3-liter diesel engine, where's my money?
- VW continues to deny that they cheated on these engines. So far, they are not covered by this settlement.
- How long does Volkswagen have to pull this all off?
- If VW fails to fix or buy back 85% of the affected cars by June 30th, 2019, they will owe more money.
- When will I get my money?
- The terms of the settlement still need to be approved by a judge, which is expected to happen by October 2016. Once approved the money will be available right away.