The reason for this is a lack of rust protection on one of the two attachments of the steering gear to the axle support. In the worst case, “the screw breaks off and the steering fails. You sit in the car and turn the steering wheel, but the wheels no longer turn," writes my colleague Haiko Tobias Prengel. He worked intensively on the screw, which Volkswagen calls N10552402.
A horror scenario that Volkswagen wants to prevent. "VW's problem screw is calculated to withstand a force that corresponds to a mass of around nine tons," writes Haiko. Although this value applies to a new screw, there are no known cases of it being torn or broken. In addition, the second screw, which also connects the steering gear to the front axle support, is not affected by the recall.
N10552402 is therefore turning into a nightmare, especially for the already ailing VW Group. VW does not have enough copies of the better coated spare part, the screw WHT 013461, in stock. These are now being produced. But because the component is classified as safety-relevant, VW still has to take all affected cars to the workshop immediately. For many of these, a new copy of the problem screw N10552402 is first installed. When WHT 013461 is available, the fun starts all over again.
Yesterday, when we discussed the abuse scandal at the American elite university Cornell in our department, it was also about the so-called frat houses. "Frat" is short for "Fraternity", the Frat Houses are the residential and community houses of American student associations. Even in Germany, connections do not have the reputation of attracting abstainers. But the excesses in the American connections were unparalleled, as everyone who ever studied in the USA agreed.
However, the scandal that is currently rocking the American Cornell University far exceeds the excessive drinking and drug trips. Two years ago, several students are said to have drugged a fellow student in a frat house and then sexually abused her.
"In the months after the alleged gang rape, there was initially hardly any reporting on the case," writes my colleague Miriam Khan. Possibly also because there was an investigation by the university, but no charges were brought by the authorities. Two years later, the victim filed a lawsuit against the seven suspects, the student association, the university and other parties involved. "A few days ago it was announced that the public prosecutor's office was reopening the case."
My colleague Claus Hecking has now arrived in New York State and met shocked students on the campus of the elite university. “The initial shock over these revelations,” says Claus, “is increasingly giving way to a wave of anger.” A demonstration is planned for Monday.
New York Governor Kathy Hochul has now removed the prosecutor in charge from the case and replaced him with a prominent special investigator: Letitia James once investigated a fraud case against Donald Trump and his sons.
Read more here: "It may well be that the men get off unpunished"
I almost had to smile when I read the introduction to the report about a terrorist raid in North Rhine-Westphalia. The investigators said they found an airsoft weapon on the suspects. If that's enough for the SEK to move in, I thought, probably a third of all families with pubescent children will have to dress warmly.
Infantile humor aside: At the beginning of the year, the Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution identified the three men as suspects, according to SPIEGEL information. Everything pointed to a strong degree of radicalization and an affinity for the “Islamic State.” The authorities monitored the men and learned about their thoughts and plans for attacks. During the search, a machete was also found in addition to the airsoft weapon mentioned.
North Rhine-Westphalia's Interior Minister Herbert Reul praised the investigators. "These guys lost themselves in fantasies of attacks and believed they were invisible," said the CDU politician. "Our Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution sees more than they would like, and our police strike before they do."
Read more here: Raids in North Rhine-Westphalia – three men are said to have planned an attack
Few politicians in recent years have been as polarizing as Robert Habeck. Some people considered him to be the greatest political talent in a long time, for others he was just an enemy, the man behind the “Heiz-Hammer”.
After the end of the traffic light coalition, the former Green Vice Chancellor withdrew from politics. My colleague Xaver von Cranach met and accompanied him in Copenhagen, where Habeck now lives. He cycled through the city with him, talked about God, the world and politics and ate with him: "We ended up at a pizzeria and Habeck didn't want to eat anything. Later, the vegetarian took a piece of salami out of the box," writes Xaver.
Double standards? Typical Habeck move, you could also say. When Russia invaded Ukraine and the natural gas lifeline Nord Stream was cut, Habeck, as Minister of Economics, had liquid gas terminals built in the North and Baltic Seas. You wouldn't have thought of him either.
But it's best to take a look for yourself:
Where were you when the Saxony-Anhalt election shook the republic, Mr. Habeck? »In the Arctic«
More agile than the police allow: Pop singer Sting, 75, doesn't believe in retiring at 63. The former frontman of the band The Police, whose real name is Gordon Matthew Thomas Sumner, wants to continue playing concerts. Even today, on his birthday, he is on stage. "I have the feeling that I still have as much energy as I did when I was 14," Sting told the dpa news agency. How does his 75th birthday feel for him? "Better than being dead."
And tonight?
If you have a gap in your education (like me), could you close an educational gap and watch “Band of Brothers.” For decades, the legendary World War II series from 2001 could only be seen on the American streaming service HBO, which also produced it. It has recently also been available on Amazon Prime.
"Band of Brothers" tells the story of an airborne division that parachutes behind enemy lines in Normandy and fights its way to Berlin as part of the Allied invasion. The plot is based on the book of the same name by the historian Stephen Ambrose, and Tom Hanks, among others, co-wrote the script.
The series now enjoys legendary status and serves as a template for the games series “Brothers in Arms” and various parts of the “Call of Duty” series.
Watching it now, 25 years after it first aired, is doubly interesting. “Band of Brothers” is still captivating. At the same time, it shows in some places how storytelling in streaming series has changed during this time.
I wish you a nice evening. Warmly
Yours, Michail Hengstenberg, author in the culture department
