“Diesel” is a dirty word at the Volkswagen Group, where the company’s emissions-cheating scandal has caused its TDI engines to be banished from its U.S. lineup—and cost the company billions in penalties. But while the Volkswagen brand is sticking with management’s decision to keep diesel out of the U.S. market (as it pursues a new electrification strategy), the situation is different at Audi and Porsche, according to high-ranking sources within the VW Group.
“Audi and Porsche are likely to go ahead with the 3.0-liter V-6 TDI,” we were told by a source within the company. Porsche had no official comment on the speculation, but the brand’s general statement, referring to global markets, is: “Porsche continues to believe in the diesel and will offer the technology where customers demand it.” And from Audi, we hear that the U.S. market continues to ask for diesels for several models, including the Q7. “For us, the diesel is far from dead,” we were told.
With the latest exhaust-treatment technology, it will be possible to meet emissions regulations consistently in the United States and elsewhere, company officials assert. (U.S. regulators have approved a fix to bring the group’s existing 3.0-liter V-6 TDI into compliance.)
The V-6 TDI previously was offered in the Audi A6, A7, A8, Q5, and Q7. At Porsche, it was sold in the Cayenne. Were the TDI to return, it would give Audi and Porsche a counterpoint to competitors, most notably BMW and Mercedes-Benz, that continue to offer diesel engines in the U.S. market.
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