The image of the PureTech engine seems to be tarnished for a long time to come. After repeated criticism of the famous oil-bath belt, now even an official institution has entered the debate, whether deliberately or not: the German police.
On social networks, the forces of law and order are multiplying their videos with a light-hearted tone. Polizei, gendarmerie, carabinieri... the format is now well known: humorous sequences, often viral, that humanize these institutions. This time, it's the police of Lower Saxony, Germany, who have lent themselves to a game that has become popular on Instagram. With his eyes closed, a policeman has to recognize a car model simply by the sound of the hood closing.
The sequence begins in earnest. The hood of a Volkswagen Bulli slams shut. Immediate and correct response. Then comes a Volkswagen Passat. Again, without hesitation. A Mercedes-Benz E-Class follows, also identified without difficulty. The exercise seems mastered. Until the last "car". Instead of a hood, the lid of a garbage can is heard closing. Unaware of the scene, the policeman blurts out "Opel Corsa". The comic effect is immediate. The video is accompanied by an ironic message: "We only have nice company cars 🤩 Sorry".
It's hard not to see this as a dig. The Opel Corsa is one of Germany's best-selling small cars. In the collective imagination, however, it has been dragging behind it the controversial reputation of the 1.2 PureTech engine, long criticized for its oil-bath timing belt problems. In recent years, the subject has spread far beyond specialist circles to reach the general public, fuelled by testimonials, recalls and even competing advertising campaigns indirectly targeting this technology.
Faced with the now viral video, Opel was quick to respond with humor. "My brother could have said anything, but he gives the name of Germany's best-selling small car," the brand retorted on social networks. An elegant way of recalling the model's commercial success, without getting into the controversy.
The German police, for their part, quickly clarified that it was not about attacking any particular brand. "It's not hatred against certain car brands, but just a little tease against our colleagues in Berlin. We definitely have the coolest emergency vehicles," she explained. In other words, more an internal rivalry than an industrial score-settling.
Nevertheless, the context is a sensitive one for Stellantis. In recent years, the automotive group has been repeatedly criticized for its PureTech, to the extent that some competitors have tried to exploit the subject in their communications. Today, a humorous video published by a regional police force is enough to rekindle a technical debate and maintain a reputation.
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This mockery is no good, but if Stellantis had handled the Puretech's reliability problem properly, we wouldn't be in this mess!