Volkswagen finds itself in hot soup with the SEC in the US after its failed Voltswagen April Fool's joke which went awry. The SEC is investigating the issue to figure out if it was an innocent mistake in the name of an April Fool's stunt or did it intend to alter the stock price by the rebranding - indicating that it was going all-in on EVs. Volkswagen and the US authorities haven't seen eye to eye after a 2015 investigation found Volkswagen to be violating emissions norms by gaming its engines. This is known as Dieselgate and which resulted in many executives being jailed and Volkswagen having to pay a hefty fine and also create electrify America which is now the largest charging network in the US.
The ID.4 is the first major EV by Volkswagen for the US market. It will taken on the Tesla Model Y
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Volkswagen characterised the Voltswagen issues as a PR stunt that had gone wrong. However, now the SEC is investigating the issue because at the time of the announcement many news outlets reported the change as a fact and in the period its stock price increased by 12.5 per cent before it was corrected.
Volkswagen made the boldest commitment of all legacy automotive brands towards electrification. It has been forced to do so after it was caught cheating during dieselgate and has been on a quest to revamp its image in front of the public. It has committed more money towards electrification than any other company and also helped create the largest charging network in the US. It also has major investments in battery tech like solid-state battery startup QuantumScape.
Volkswagen owned Electrify America is the biggest EV charging network in the US
In 2020, it started delivering its first EVs - the ID.3 and its subsidiary brands, Audi and Porsche unveiled their EV cars like the E-Tron line and the Taycan which been universally acclaimed as the most driver-centric EV. In 2021, it has launched the ID.4 which is centred towards the US market. There is even chatter about it launching an AWD variant of the same after the unveiling of the GTX variant in Germany.
