In case you haven't noticed, Volkswagen of American has a new spokesbug in their commercials. A couple of weeks ago, the German brand started running a series of ads featuring a black fifties era Beetle as the host of a talk show with the likes of Heidi Klum and German pop idol David Hasselhof as guests. The latest edition features the Bug in a debate with Napster creator Shawn Fanning about the relative merits of free music and clean diesel. Fanning makes it clear that since clean diesel is legal (in all fifty states) it is definitely cooler than free music. The Beetle seems unconvinced. We're waiting patiently for our crack at one of the Jetta TDIs that are due to start arriving stateside in June so we can make our own judgment. The real question may of course be, why can't we have both? While you ponder that check out the video after the jump.

Volkswagen has long been a proponent of diesel engines and they are accelerating those efforts. Starting early in 2008 the company will launch new diesel engines in the US market using the CleanTDI branding. The first models available will be the Jetta Sportwagen and sedan which will be fifty-state legal and Tier 2 Bin 5 compliant. The new diesel four cylinder will have an output of 140hp and meet all the standards without urea injection. The Touareg will also get a CleanTDI V-6 but that one will require urea injection.

Overseas, VW has a range of TDI engines that already meet the 2009 Euro-5 emissions standards. The big Phaeton sedan gets a 233hp 3.0L V-6 while the new Tiguan crossover gets a pair of four cylinders with 140hp and 170hp. By next year, Volkswagen will have nine BlueMotion models in their lineup including six that will debut at the Frankfurt Motor Show.

[Source: Volkswagen]

I won't go in depth telling you all the specifications of the new diesel engine that is going into various VW's with the TDI moniker starting early in 2008, if you are interested in knowing more about them, click here. What I will mention is that these vehicles will mark the first Jetta's sold with diesel engines in all 50 states since '99. And it will be available in a wagon body style! Woo hoo! Could these vehicles be exactly what the middle-class green market is looking for? Could be, and I am looking forward to seeing how they drive. Stay tuned!

[Source: Autoblog]

As we mentioned at the end of March, Volkswagen is moving forward with plans to make cars in China get better mileage. Here's a bit more on the effort, from Just Auto (subs req'd).

Most of the story is on VW's work on launching diesel engines in China within the next few years. VW predicts, through an internal study, that diesel cars will grow from five percent of the passenger cars in China in 2010 to about one third in 2020. That's a lot of oil burners. VW's China division will invest EUR500mn not only for the diesel engines but also for "environment-friendly engines and gearboxes." And don't forget China's biodiesel efforts.

This summer, VW will make more decisions on it's future strategy in China. More than 200,000 VW cars were sold in China in the first quarter of 2007.

Related:

• Volkswagen launches Chinese fuel economy initiative

[Source: Just Auto]