EmissionsScandal
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Fiat Chrysler settles with US over diesel emissions cheating
Fiat Chrysler is about to pay a stiff penalty for its alleged diesel vehicle emissions cheating. The automaker has reached a settlement with the Justice Department, EPA and California that will see it make amends for claimed violations of the country's Clean Air Act. It's launching a recall to fix the more than 100,000 diesel vehicles believed to be exceeding pollution limits. More importantly, there's a hefty financial punishment. Fiat Chrysler will pay as much as $800 million to address the case, including a combined $311 million in civil penalties, up to $280 million to address claims from owners (who get an average of $2,800 each) and $100 million for post-fix extended warranties.
Audi CEO arrested over alleged role in Dieselgate scandal
Audi CEO Rupert Stadler was arrested today, a week after his home was raided by German prosecutors. He has reportedly been detained for his alleged role in Dieselgate, a scandal unearthed in 2015 that revealed Volkswagen, Audi's parent company, had installed software in its vehicles that allowed them to cheat emissions tests. The "defeat device" as it's known was able to detect when a car's emissions were being tested and it would then switch on full emissions controls that were usually off in order to make it appear as if the autos were within regulations.
VW pleads guilty in US emissions scandal, will pay $4.3 billion
Volkswagen has agreed to pay $4.3 billion to settle criminal and civil charges brought by the United States Justice Department over the company's use of emissions-cheating technology in millions of its diesel vehicles sold around the world, the AP reports. As part of the settlement, the company plead guilty to three criminal charges and it will be required to work with an independent monitor for three years. Overall, this is the largest penalty handed down to an automaker in US history.
Audi reportedly cheated gas engine emissions tests, too
The California Air Resources Board has reportedly discovered that even more VW-Group vehicles were cheating emissions tests. The WSJ and Reuters (via German paper Bild) are talking about how regulators have found software in Audi cars that effectively masked their CO2 output under examination. The revelations were apparently made up to four months ago, but neither Volkswagen, Audi or CARB have made the news public.
VW will begin buying back diesel vehicles in mid-November
Volkswagen's ongoing diesel emissions scandal puttered forward again today as a US federal judge finally approved the $14.7 billion settlement between the automaker and owners of some 475,000 diesel vehicles. According to Reuters, Volkswagen will start buying back those fraudulent vehicles around the middle of November.
Volkswagen investors sue for another $9 billion in damages
It's been exactly one year since news of Volkswagen's emissions testing scandal broke wide, and the lawsuits keep on coming. Already on the hook for $14.7 billion in one of the largest class-action settlements in US history, another 1,400 of VW's investors are now suing the company for grand total of $9.1 billion (8.2 billion euros) in damages.
Regulators reject plan to fix 85,000 diesel Volkswagens
Although Volkswagen has those ambitious plans to launch 30 new electric vehicles in the next 10 years, the German automaker is still on the hook for that $14.7 billion class-action settlement related to the diesel emissions scandal. While VW has already agreed to buy back nearly half a million 2.0L diesel engine vehicles, the California Air Resources Board rejected the company's plan to fix another 85,000 3.0L diesel VWs, Audis and Porsches that are still on the road.
VW agrees to $14.7 billion settlement over US diesel claims
After news of a settlement broke yesterday, Volkswagen's diesel emissions scandal settlement will indeed hit $15 billion in the US. The official paperwork was filed with the Justice Department today, the automaker will shell out $14.7 billion in two separate settlements -- one with the United States and the state of California and another with the Federal Trade Commission. Figures have continued to rise since the initial reports of $5,000 per vehicle in April rose to $10,000 each. That money, which totals just over $10 billion, will be used to buy back affected vehicles at their pre-cheating scandal price. The actual payouts will range from $5,100 to $10,000 plus the value of the car before news of the emissions test first broke.
The cost of VW's emissions scandal hits $18.2 billion
A day after a reported deal between Volkswagen and regulators over its emissions scandal, the company offered an update on the cost of the ordeal. This week, reports surfaced that customers would have the option of compensation and repair or allowing VW to buy back any vehicles with the faulty emissions equipment. However, an official announcement on the terms hasn't been made just yet. The diesel emissions scandal in which car systems were rigged to cheat tests affected around 600,000 vehicles.
Don't bank on Volkswagen paying you $5,000 just yet
Well, this is awkward. Yesterday, German newspaper Die Welt claimed that every American with one of Volkswagen's dodgy diesels would receive $5,000 in compensation. Today, Reuters is offering up a contradictory report saying that the terms of the proposed settlement are substantially different. According to sources, VW's as-yet-confidential deal with regulators means it'll buy back 500,000 of the vehicles that cheated emissions tests. In addition, $1 billion is being set aside as an apology fund for affected owners who will need to buy a new ride. Simple division means that you'd be getting your money back on the car, plus an extra two grand as a mea culpa.
NYT finds smoking gun in the hands of Volkswagen's former CEO
Volkswagen's former CEO has always said that he knew nothing about his company's emissions-cheating policy. His default line is that he learned about the scandal just days before the firm publicly admitted its guilt. Unfortunately for Martin Winterkorn (pictured), internal memos suggest that his memory might be a little faulty. The New York Times is claiming to have seen these documents, kindly supplied by German newspaper Bild. If accurate, the paperwork says that Winterkorn may have known about the conspiracy up to sixteen months before it was revealed to the public. One document, dated May 2014, is an explicit warning to him that regulators might have found the offending defeat device. So, uh, hey, Martin -- you still sure you didn't know anything about this until September 2015?
VW offers $1,000 in gift cards and vouchers to affected diesel owners
Volkwagen's attempt to compensate vehicle owners who drive one of the models included in the company's emissions scandal is now official. The initial reports were indeed correct, as the company will offer $1,000 in gift cards and other incentives to VW customers. On top of a $500 dealership credit, the 482,000 diesel owners will also receive a $500 Visa gift card that can be used anywhere and free roadside assistance for three years. Audi customers who drive affected vehicles will be privy to the same "goodwill package," too. Owners will have to visit a special website to request the items by entering their car's VIN number and mileage alongside their name and address. Volkwagen says those customers should receive the package in a month. The company is already offering $2,000 in trade-in credit, and with today's announcement, the total compensation for owners of vehicles included in the on-going saga can be worth up to $3,000.[Image credit: Getty Images]
Volkswagen also lied about its gas-powered cars
Volkswagen admitted in September that it used defeat devices aimed at fooling emissions tests in 11 million of its diesel vehicles -- but now its gasoline models are implicated in the scandal as well. On Tuesday, Volkswagen reported that it understated the level of carbon dioxide emissions of about 800,000 vehicles, including gasoline-powered models. This is the first confirmation that some of Volkswagen's gasoline-run vehicles do in fact exceed carbon dioxide emissions. The company didn't provide details in today's revelation, but it said the conclusion comes after conducting internal emissions tests.
Volkswagen chokes on its first loss in 15 years
After inventing a diesel engine that doesn't emit any harmful gases into the atmosphere, you'd think that VW would never run out of money ever again. Despite this, the German auto maker has just posted a quarterly loss of €3.48 billion ($3.84 billion) which, if we're honest, makes very little sense. After all, the financial documents reveal that the firm was making a pile of money up until September, and then everything drops off a cliff. The only thing that makes sense is if something totally implausible took place, like discovering that the firm was using software in a global system of emissions fraud. But, if we're honest, nobody in their right mind would attempt something so irresponsible as that, would they.
