ASA Adjudication on Volkswagen Group UK Ltd

Ad

Two radio ads for Audi cars.

a. The first ad featured a voice-over, which stated "Mr Roger from Cardiff buys an Audi A6 2 litre TDIe capable of up to 816 miles on one tank. He receives a complimentary SE upgrade with leather upholstery, Bluetooth phone connection and DVD navigation. Edinburgh is 408 miles away. How many tanks would he need for a round trip? One. Another economical answer from Audi. Visit audi.co.uk\offers. Audi. Vorsprung durch Technik".

b. In the second ad, the voice-over stated "Mr Stevens buys an Audi A3 1.9 TDIe capable of up to 62 miles per gallon. A complimentary sports upgrade equips his A3 with 17 inch alloy wheels, multi-function steering wheel and front sports seats. But how many gallons does Mr Stevens need to visit his aunt sixty miles away. One. Another economical answer from Audi ...".

Issue

One listener complained about ad (a), another about ad (b) and a third about both ads.  The listeners believed the ads were misleading, because they understood that the claimed fuel usage was based on fuel economy figures calculated on the basis of tests undertaken in ideal conditions. They did not believe the journeys could be completed using the claimed amount of fuel.  

BCAP Radio Code

Response

Volkswagen said the claims in ad (a) were based on Fuel Consumption Test data taken from the Vehicle Certification Authority (VCA).  They said, based on the test, the combined fuel consumption for the Audi A6 2-litre TDIe was 53.3 miles per gallon (mpg) or 5.3 litres per 100 kilometres (km).  They said they had calculated that, using 5.3 litres per 100 km and, with the car's 70-litre fuel tank, the vehicle was capable of covering a distance of 1321 km with one tank of fuel, which they converted back to miles to predict a possible mileage per tank of 816, which was the figure they used in the ad.  They pointed out that an on-line route-planner stated that the distance from Cardiff to Edinburgh was 387 miles, which would equate to a round trip of 774 miles; the claim in the ad allowed for an additional 42-mile contingency.  

Volkswagen said the claims in ad (b) for the Audi A3 1.9 TDIe were also based on the Fuel Consumption Test.  They said the official combined fuel consumption of the Audi A3 1.9 was 62.8 mpg, which meant that in a combination of extra urban and urban mileage it would take one gallon of fuel to travel 62.8 miles. They therefore believed the claims "capable of up to 62 miles per gallon" and "how many gallons to visit his aunt 60 miles away? One" were accurate because one gallon of fuel would take the car 60 miles.

Volkswagen sent information on the Fuel Consumption Test to the ASA, which showed how it was conducted and how the combined fuel consumption figure was calculated.

The RACC said the figures quoted in the ads were the combined mpg for the Audi A6, which was 53.3, and the combined mpg for the Audi A3, which was 62.8.  They said the combined mpg comprised both urban and motorway driving conditions and not just ideal or motorway conditions.  They said the figures were the current publicly available fuel economy figures, which they regarded as being the standard benchmark in measuring fuel efficiency.  They said they required the ads to state "up to" the claimed mileage to make clear that fuel efficiency was variable and therefore a maximum mileage applied.  They did not believe that the ads claimed a definite absolute mileage could be achieved.

Assessment

Not upheld

The ASA noted the claims about fuel consumption were based on a calculation derived from official testing of the performance of the two cars.  We noted legislation required car manufacturers to include fuel consumption testing data for a particular model in all marketing materials, except internet and broadcast ads.  We understood that part of the VCA's role, as the certification body and official UK source of data for car fuel consumption and exhaust emissions figures, was to manage and report the results of rigorous laboratory testing of new car models which would produce accurate fuel consumption figures to facilitate comparisons between different models.  We noted that the VCA did not intend their figures to be completely representative of fuel consumption under real driving conditions.  We also understood that the combined fuel consumption figure was calculated using an average of data from tests conducted in conditions similar to in town driving and motorway driving conditions.  We noted, although the figures were not always completely representative of fuel consumption under real driving conditions due to, for example, variation in driving styles and weather conditions, which would have an effect on the results achieved in individual cases, the ads were qualified with the term "up to".  We considered that listeners were therefore unlikely to expect that the exact stated fuel consumption figures could be achieved in all motoring circumstances and concluded that the ads were unlikely to mislead.

We investigated the ad under CAP (Broadcast) Radio Advertising Standards Code Section 2, rule 3.1 (Misleadingness) but did not find it in breach.

Action

No further action necessary.

Adjudication of the ASA Council (Broadcast)