REPORT: Audi of America president de Nysschen calls Chevy Volt "a car for idiots," slams electric vehicles
Audi of America President Johan de Nysschen is a big fan of diesels (no surprise), and during a recent chat with veteran auto journo Lawrence Ulrich, de Nysschen imparted a few choice morsels on the pitfalls of electric cars, with an extra helping of wrath aimed at the Chevrolet Volt.
To start, he said the Volt is "a car for idiots." Adding that they're too expensive and, "No one is going to pay a $15,000 premium for a car that competes with a (Toyota) Corolla. So there are not enough idiots who will buy it." He predicted that the Volt will fall flat, which will cause the federal government to step in and subsidize the Volt in order to save face and boost sales.
And what about pure electric vehicles? According to de Nysschen, "they're for the intellectual elite who want to show what enlightened souls they are." Maybe de Nysschen should check with the corporate mothership on that last point, considering Audi's set to unveil its own EV concept this month at the Frankfurt Motor Show. Whoops.
[Source: MSN Exhaust Notes | Image: Saul Loeb/AFP/Getty]
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 9)
jay4 7:43PM (9/03/2009)
I'll never buy a car from this idiot. Thanks for the heads-up.
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Gary 7:32PM (9/03/2009)
Only idiots would buy a Prius which competes for Corolla customers...
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Adis 7:56PM (9/03/2009)
seriously, its getting old... attacking the Prius.... get at something new... The Prius, changed the whole hybrid ball game.... and did it successfully, whereas the other car companies are trying to get a piece of.... Like someone else said... start attacking the A3 which costs 30k + and is just a golf.... now thats being an idiot.
Jimbo 8:06PM (9/03/2009)
Adis: I could be wrong, but I think Gary's being sarcastic.
Seminole 8:08PM (9/03/2009)
Adis,
You must have missed Gary's sarcasm. Lighten up.
Noidor 8:28PM (9/03/2009)
READ THE WHOLE DAMN ARTICLE!
He did add that plug-in hybrids are good in concept and hold advantages over diesels in stop-and-go driving. BUT FOR THE MOMENT, de Nysschen noted, electric vehicles (EVs) are more about making a statement.
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I’ve come to know Audi of America President Johan de Nysschen as a passionate advocate of fuel-sipping diesel engines. That passion was on full display when I sat with de Nysschen at a media dinner in Carneros, Calif. (after test drives of three new Audi models), during which he sharply criticized electric vehicles -- including GM’s Chevy Volt.
He dismissed GM’s upcoming plug-in hybrid as “a car for idiots,” saying that few consumers will be willing to pay $40,000 -- the Volt’s estimated base price -- for a car that competes against $25,000 sedans and conventional hybrids. Nor, he noted, is the Volt a luxury car whose green-technology costs will be excused because it also delivers prestige or performance.
“No one is going to pay a $15,000 premium for a car that competes with a (Toyota) Corolla,” he said. “So there are not enough idiots who will buy it.”
He did add that plug-in hybrids are good in concept and hold advantages over diesels in stop-and-go driving. But for the moment, de Nysschen noted, electric vehicles (EVs) are more about making a statement.
“They’re for the intellectual elite who want to show what enlightened souls they are,” he said.
De Nysschen expressed frustration with regulators and policymakers, saying the public has been hoodwinked into believing that EVs are the only answer to global warming. The U.S. government, he said, is pouring billions of dollars into EV technology, yet diesel technology could deliver a more immediate and dramatic decrease in global-warming emissions. And the man knows of what he speaks: Modern diesels already power half of Audi’s cars in Europe and have helped Audi dominate recent runnings of the 24 Hours of LeMans. Diesels have been shown to emit 25 percent less carbon dioxide than gasoline engines, while using 25 to 35 percent less fuel.
Mass electrification of cars, he argued, would result in a net increase in carbon dioxide emissions, because so much of America’s electrical grid relies on dirty coal for its energy. Cleaning up the nation’s power grid is the real priority, he said, and only then can EVs make environmental sense.
The Audi of America president ended with a bold prediction: The Volt will fall flat. And the federal government, having publicly forced GM to develop electric cars, will subsidize the Volt to save face and boost sales.
Whether that comes to pass or not, expect de Nysschen to continue to lobby Washington to ensure that diesels get their fair share of federal support.
Lad 8:46PM (9/03/2009)
If you were a car company CEO and made a decision to go with dirty fossil fuel(diesel), wouldn't you criticise the decisions by the competition to build clean electric cars? This guy is covering his but', pure and simple. It's a case of using negative PR for you own benefit. If Audi doesn't sell diesels to recoup their investments, he's out of a job!
zamafir 8:59PM (9/03/2009)
@Lad - you might want to read about before you come off like an idiot:
"An online report today, subsequently picked up by various other forums, left an unflattering sense of my feelings toward electric vehicles and the people who support their development. Let me clearly state that, in my opinion, electric vehicles will be part of the future transportation of society – but only if we go about it the right way. In fact, Audi is working on electric vehicles.
I do not specifically recall using the term “car for idiots” during my informal conversation with the writer. It was certainly not my intention to leave the impression that I’m opposed to electrical vehicles, and if I was unclear on either of those points then I need to eat crow.
What I do recall is the essence of my contention, namely that the feasibility of the Chevrolet Volt as a concept is questionable. And that policy decisions – and the industry’s reactions to those decisions – are leading us toward a technology that may sound tempting on the surface, but, as of now, also contains many deep and unsolved economic and technological compromises.
“Mass electrification” of the vehicles on American roads could lead to problems like a strained electric grid. Large-scale utilization of electric vehicles will require massive investment in new power stations that are much cleaner than the ones in use in the U.S. today. Otherwise, it could merely shift greenhouse gas emissions from the tailpipes of cars to the smokestacks of coal-burning utilities. That’s not just my opinion. The California Air Resource Board this past April concluded that electric vehicles presently are second only to hydrogen cars in greenhouse gas impact when measured on a well-to-wheel basis.
Returning to the Volt, my point was simply one of its economic feasibility today. The 50% or so price increase that the Volt represents over a similar gasoline car cannot be offset through the savings from reduced fuel consumption. The only way to offset the extreme premium for the Volt is through taxpayer-funded subsidies. So I question if that makes economic sense.
Does that mean the Volt and other electric vehicles are forever impractical? Of course not.
In recent broadcast interviews, discussions with journalists and meetings with policy makers I have asserted that the future of automotive transportation lies not in any one “silver bullet”, but in a range of technologies that meet different needs – all while lowering emissions and fuel consumption. That includes plug-in electric cars when technological and economic hurdles make them more practical. It includes hybrid vehicles. And it includes clean diesel along with substantially more efficient takes on today’s gasoline internal combustion engines.
Admittedly I am a passionate advocate for the role that clean diesel technology can play in easing this nation’s challenges. Cutting through misperceptions about clean diesel and other technologies can be frustrating. If you’d like to hear my thoughts on these issues, go to a video of my recent remarks at www.audiusanews.com. Meanwhile, know that we are working toward a more sustainable future."
Sounds to me like Audi's working on electric cars, and debuting a concept this month.
geo.stewart 9:00PM (9/03/2009)
yep, and my guess is that the Volt would be more successful in Europe where petrol is higher than in the US.
but honestly. for Johan';s argument to be valid, the Prius would have had to flop.
it hasnt
Jimbo 9:13PM (9/03/2009)
The followup interview is much better than the original. It help clarify his viewpoint without making him look like a jackass, something the original interview fails to do. However, he is making flawed comparisons. The Volt and Corolla do not compete against each other. They are technologically different and aim at completely different customers. It's like comparing the A3 to the Corolla, or even the Prius to the Corolla. Different customers.
And mark my words, GM will sell every Volt they can make, at least for the first couple years. With the federal tax credit, the Volt would be priced comparable to high-end versions of the Prius. I think there is a lot of genuine interest in the Volt and are willing to pay the small premium over the Prius to get the Volt.
And before people start complaining about the tax credit, VW/Audi gets a tax credit for their diesels and Toyota had tax credits when their hybrids first hit the market. In both cases, the tax credit built up customer interest and confidence in their respective technology and now have customer bases willing buy the vehicles without the credits.
gerrrg 9:27PM (9/03/2009)
I think the general message is correct; the Volt is going to fail.
Late next year, Nissan Leaf comes out and undercuts them by $15~20K, and the Volt's failure will be considered a legacy fault of Lutz.
And Toyota has already critiqued an all-electric platform in kinder language, suggesting that the batteries are too expensive to make it practical.
The moment Toyota releases the Yaris Hybrid and Honda releases the Fit Hybrid, the Volt will be dead.
Luke 10:32PM (9/03/2009)
Wow this guy sounds like a total D-bag, just like most of the audi owners I know
Jimbo 10:36PM (9/03/2009)
gerrrg: You don't get it. The Yaris Hybrid and Fit Hybrid (if it even comes to the U.S.) target completely different customers than the Volt, Leaf, or even the Prius. They have absolutley no bearing on whether or not the Volt would be a success.
The Nissan Leaf is a genuine competitor, but how many people are willing to buy a car with only a 100 mile range (in optimal conditions)? Range anxiety alone will relegate the Leaf to niche status. The Leaf will be a family's second or third car, driven primarily for commuting. And the Leaf is expected to be priced only $5k less than the Volt when the tax rebate is included. Finally, the Leaf will only be available in a handful of markets initially.
The Volt is designed to be a family's primary vehicle, just like the Prius. It won't leave you stranded if you drive more than 100 miles, unlike the Leaf. The price of the Volt after the tax rebate would come to the low-to-mid $30k's. The Prius tops out in the low $30k's. The people willing to pay for a top-of-the-line Prius are exactly the people that would pay a little more to get the Volt.
If GM can get the Volt on the market, with adequate reliability, and at the price they have been projecting, how exactly will the Volt be a failure?
MKIV 10:37PM (9/03/2009)
If I was Audi, I'd hate anything electrical too.. Can't really blame the guy.
Lad 1:43AM (9/04/2009)
@zamafir:
You are very quick to call people names rather than debate the subject in a gentlemanly and intelligent way. I suggest to you that everyone who disagrees with you is not an idiot, nor are you right in your defense of a CEO who calls others idiots. You and your Audi hero might easily catch a punch in the nose if you were to confront people in person with your high school approach to debating, and hiding behind the anonymity of a blog comments section.
In any case This CEO has stated that electric cars only move the problems of pollution from the car to the power plant. He hasn't read the various reports in this blog that say it is much easier to clean up the air at power plants than the poor air produced by millions of distributed ICEs. As I remember reading, there is a considerable reduction of 1 to 2 thirds by using zero emission cars. Also, if the coal power plants were replaced by solar, renewable and nat gas, the CO2 problem would be completely solved. So much for the facts from a Audi CEO who has discredited himself by calling people idiots...he might find it difficult to sell his diesels, if drivers don't believe his PR.
Brian 8:00AM (9/04/2009)
@Jimbo
That federal tax credit is a government subsidy.
Luis 8:56AM (9/04/2009)
The only idiot is you, sir. The Prius has so much equipment a Corolla wishes it had. I'm not going to list them, because every time some fool makes this comparison someone else lists the differences (standard/optional equipment).
Take a hike, dolt.
pnut166 6:38PM (9/04/2009)
According to de Nysschen, "they're for the intellectual elite who want to show what enlightened souls they are." >>>>I could say the same thing about pretty much everything Audi makes !
GT Rob 3:30PM (9/04/2009)
What is the fascination with ragging on our countries companies? After all, companies that create opportunity for all of us to work in interesting and rewarding jobs are what makes it possible for the US standard of living to be so high. I bet you can't find a similar board in German where Germans sit around all day thinking up of crap to say about VW, BMW or Mercedes! Most countries have pride in the locally made products. Stand on the street corner of Tokyo and see if you can find a German car....you'll see them but they will be few and far between. Stand on the street corner of Seoul and look for a Toyota or a Honda and you might wait all day. Toyota has just a 3% market share in Germany!!
Have a little pride in your country and your countries companies. GM's Volt may or may not be a success but they are the front runners in this technology (which was started way before gas got to $5/gallon) and we should all be excited and hopeful they succeed. After all we have 10 ways to make electricity which doesn't involve buying natural resources from countries that want to blow us up!
I'm sure the guys that built horse drawn carriages 110 years ago figured the car would fall flat on it's face. When Orville and Wilbur Wright built the first airplane the newspapers branded it a great invention that would never be commercially viability.
Electric cars will eventually be a part of our lives.....to what extent is yet to be determined. However, I think most car companies are secretly riding their engineers to catch up....
gerrrg 5:55PM (9/04/2009)
@Jimbo
All-electric cars are the future, but not immediately so, by at least a decade. Very few states and cities will have the necessary infrastructure for plug in electric models which will limit their sale base. The cost of the batteries still remains the largest obstacle, however.
No one yet knows what the price will be, so we can't determine if it'll be cost-competitive, but it goes without saying, they will be taking a loss on every Volt sold, not including all the costs already spent on development for an extended EV. If as some reports have it, they will take a loss of $5,000 on each Volt, that's a $5 million loss on just 1000 cars sold. For 2008, Toyota sold nearly 120,000 Prius. If GM sold that many units, they'd take a $600 million loss.
As I said, battery costs is what's the biggest obstacle, costing between 25% and 40% of the Volt's build price tag.
There is a reason why Toyota is going after a plug-in hybrid, and not a pure-electric production vehicle.