VW's Herbert Diess Explains Why Brand's EVs Are Better Than Gas

According to Diess, it's time to switch to an EV, and here's why.

2021 Volkswagen ID.4 AWD exterior dynamic

Steven Loveday

By: Steven Loveday

Oct 18, 2021 at 11:31am ET

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Those who closely follow the EV segment have likely seen Chairman of the Board of Management of Volkswagen Group Herbert Diess in the news of late. This is because he's been pushing the automaker to see that EVs are the way of the future. Now he's advocating for EVs on LinkedIn, though strangely, it seems his recent post may have been taken down.

Diess went so far as to put executives in a panic over potential job losses across the automotive group, and he invited Tesla CEO Elon Musk to talk to Volkswagen executives. Some folks are suggesting that perhaps Tesla and VW will join hands in some way in the future, but that's a different story for a different day.

His post on LinkedIn basically spells out how much money a person could save by choosing an electric car over a gas-powered car. To make it as straightforward as possible, Diess shared data from Autozeitung that compares the gas-powered Tiguan compact crossover to the new ID.4 electric SUV. He says driving a combustion engine car costs up to 50% more than an electric car.

The post reads:

“Driving a combustion engine car costs up to 50% more compared to an e-car. The Autozeitung does the math, taking into account all the costs:

Driving a VW Tiguan costs around 30% more per kilometer than an ID.4. One kilometer in an Audi Q5 costs around 40% more compared to a Q4 e-tron. And driving a Skoda Kodiaq is around 50% more expensive per kilometer compared to an Enyaq.

It’s time to switch!”

The fact that Diess is outwardly discouraging people from buying the gas-powered Tiguan is a major step forward. As you probably remember, it wasn't long ago when some automotive CEOs were publicly discouraging people from buying EVs. Many automakers that weren't disparaging EVs on social media were still working behind the scenes to make sure electric cars weren't widely available, and people were discouraged from buying them at dealerships.

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We're starting to see this transition among other legacy brands as well, though not to such a degree. Ford's CEO and communications team have been busy promoting EVs on social media, though they haven't stopped promoting gas vehicles. GM continues to up its commitment to electric vehicles as well, but its CEO hasn't stepped forward and told people gas cars are costing them too much money.

Be Sure To Read These VW/Tesla Articles As Well:

VW Admits That Tesla Is Pushing It To Speed Up Shift To EVs

We'll have to wait and see how Volkwagen's plans play out, and how much impact Diess' words, the words of Musk, may have. We're also interested in what may come of the potential for a future collaboration between VW and Tesla. For now, we're just glad to see that Diess is putting the facts out there for all eyes to see.

Source: Herbert Diess (LinkedIn) via Teslarati

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