Just to let you know, motion sickness in cars had nothing to do with mysterious chemicals emitted from any type of plastic (German made or otherwise) dashboards! When it is vehicle by vehicle and someone is not otherwise “car sick,” it is either the visibility or the suspension. For instance, in Jeep Cheorkees that had the “old” suspension, the car swayed from side to side creating a confusing sensation for the proprioception system within the body making many people feel car sick! Not sure what it is about VWs for the gentleman who called, but there you go!
Sometimes the suspension in a car will cause motion sickness. When I was a kid, I used to get carsick in the 1949 Dodge my parents owned. Mysteriously, my carsickness disappeared and my parents attributed it to my getting older. I read sometime later in either an old Consumer Reports or an old Consumer Bulletin warning potential buyers to test the rear seat with a passenger prone to motion sickness to see if the car would be o.k. Apparently, Chrysler products back then did sway in the rear end. In my case, the Dodge was traded for a 1954 Buick and presto–no more motion sickness.
We have had people write to us complaining of the effects of VOC’s and these effects were so severe that they wanted to return the car. I don’t have a problem with the statement " automotive motion sickeness is not caused by the effects of the outgassing of materials inside the auto". More than one type of “sickness” involved here.
Modern dashboards are made from a chemical process involving the expansion of polyurethane. It is a process created by the huge German industrial complex. All German built cars use this process however so do all the car manufacturers in the world. New cars do have the “new car” smell because of the chemical processes used to make all the polycarbonate and polyurethane based plastic parts for the automobile. It is possible that someone could be sensitive to these chemicals.
I agree with one of the other postings - suspension may be the issue. Thirty to forty years ago - when we would travel to Germany to visit my grandparents - I would inevitably get car sick while driving around in my grandfather’s Mercedes. The ride was a huge change from my family’s GM car back home. I am sensitive to fumes and don’t rule it out - but my vote is for the suspension. I will add that I get sick when I drive in cars with gray interiors. Doh!
The only time I experienced this type problem was in a rental car. Thought at the time it was the shape of the windshield which slightly blurred the view at the edges of the windshield; so once the car was in motion, it made me feel motion sick.