Volkswagen Apologizes for ‘Voltzwagen’ April Fool’s Joke

Volkswagen of America has apologized after landing itself in hot water over its pre-April Fool’s Day joke. After issuing what appeared to be a leaked press release earlier in the week announcing the company would be changing its name to “Voltswagen” — an alleged effort to stress its commitment to electric vehicles — the company confirmed Tuesday the statement was false and had been intended as a pre-April Fool’s Day joke.

In the initial press release, a draft of which was “accidentally” published on Monday, the company announced it would be replacing the “k” with a “t.” The release called the change a “public declaration of the company’s future-forward investment in e-mobility,” according to CNBC, and explained “Voltswagen” would be placed as an exterior badge on all EV models. Scott Keogh, CEO of Volkswagen of America, was quoted in the release saying, “We have said, from the beginning of our shift to an electric future, that we will build EVs for the millions, not just millionaires,” The Verge reports, and added that the change “signifies a nod to our past as the peoples’ car and our firm belief that our future is in being the peoples’ electric car.” Volkswagen’s various social media accounts also promoted the name change, with the official Twitter account sharing an image of the fake “Voltswagen” logo alongside a caption reading “66 is an unusual age to change your name.” The press release was repeated in a mass e-mail to reporters Tuesday, sparking numerous articles about the name change across several outlets.

In an emailed statement to The Washington Post, however, Volkswagen spokesman Mark Gillies confirmed the statement was false and that “there will be no renaming of Volkswagen of America.” Gillies added that the initial statement announcing the renaming “was designed to be an announcement in the spirit of April Fool’s Day” and was meant to highlight “the launch of the all-electric ID.4” and also signal Volkswagen of America’s “commitment to bringing electric mobility to all.”

What was meant to be a joke, however, has landed the company in hot water. The press release followed Volkswagen’s 2015 emission scandal in which it cheated on government emissions tests to allow diesel cars to test as low-emission. It also follows the company’s scandal last May centered around a racist ad shared to its German social media accounts. The Associated Press reports the joke could even land Volkswagen in trouble with U.S. securities regulators, as the company’s stock price rose nearly 5% the day after the false name change leaked.