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:

  1. VW will offer to buy back or terminate existing leases on the affected cars
  2. VW will offer cash compensation, anywhere between $5,100 and $10,000, to the owners and lessees
  3. 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:

  1. Sell your car back to Volkswagen
  2. 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.

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