Cars

Don’t you just hate it when someone has the power to make a real difference, but won’t use it? Take Volkswagen for instance. It’s Europe’s biggest car maker, eager to display itself as a friend of the environment and known worldwide for its high standards of engineering.

Yet for years VW has failed to put its money where its mouth is and commercially produce cars that are both cheap to run and emit far less CO2 than the rest of the market.

VW has launched its latest advert ahead of the US Super Bowl this weekend.

The advert is a follow-up to last year’s Little Darth one which we lampooned to reveal the Dark Side of VW’s environmental claims. It still riffs on a Star Wars theme and throws in a cute dog for good measure, but is there any mention of supporting ambitious climate laws?

VW has been ignoring our requests for a meeting, so we've paid a visit to its exhibition stand at the Brussels Motor Show.

Or, to be more precise, dozens of polar bears (including the majestic Paula Bear) have invaded the prestigious Autosalon 2012 event to protest about the impact that Volkswagen and the rest of the car industry is having on our climate and the Arctic.

Today the Dark Side has come to Brussels, where the world’s biggest car companies are gathering for a shadowy meeting where they will decide whether to block a key European climate law to clean up our engines.