Volkswagen was having a rebirth in the United States in the mid to late 2000’s. They had become synonymous with the idea of clean diesel and technological advancement. 

Diesel Sales in the United States were at an all time high and with their higher fuel efficiency and the promises of clean planet friendly protection systems, they were the obvious choice for the environmentally minded american. 

But it turns out VW had a dark secret hidden in the computers of their cars. They could trick the testors, producing almost no emissions in the lab. But when these cars made it out on the actual road they began producing harmful gasses at off the chart rates. 

This engine was put in millions eventually leading to one of the largest environmental scandals in history of the automobile industry. 

This episode we will get into the history of VW. The company somehow goes from Nazi Prestige project, to free love and a symbol of the counterculture. Then we will get into the circumstances leading up to the not so miracle engine. 

Sources:

“Faster, Higher, Farther: The Volkswagen Scandal” by Jack Ewing(2017)

“1990 Clean Air Act Amendment Summary: Title II” EPA Website https://www.epa.gov/clean-air-act-overview/1990-clean-air-act-amendment-summary-title-ii#:~:text=The%20Clean%20Air%20Act%20of,beginning%20in%20model%20year%201994.

“How American Icon Henry Ford Fostered Anti-Semitism” By Becky Little (2023) History.com   https://www.history.com/news/henry-ford-antisemitism-worker-treatment

“How the Volkswagen Bus Became a Symbol of Counterculture” by David Kindy 2020 for Smithsonian Magizine https://www.smithsonianmag.com/innovation/how-volkswagen-bus-became-symbol-counterculture-180974354/#:~:text=Its%20boxy%20appearance%E2%80%94so%20unlike,the%20nickname%20%E2%80%9Chippie%20bus.%E2%80%9D

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