Volkswagen manipulated data in Europe too: German minister

Just because Volkswagen CEO Martin Winterkorn resigned over the “Dieselgate” scandal or that the company has put aside $11 million to cover for whatever expenses it might have caused doesn’t mean that the world will suddenly stop putting the vehicle maker under a microscope.

The reputational damage to Volkswagen is implicit in the market’s response.

VW is under pressure to act decisively, with its shares plunging since the crisis broke and German Chancellor Angela Merkel urging it to quickly restore confidence in a company held up for generations as a paragon of German engineering prowess.

The scandal spurred the head of Volkswagen to step down from his job this week, even though he denied having involvement in it.

After falling on his sword for Volkswagen AG’s rigging USA diesel emissions tests, VW CEO Martin Winterkorn, 68, stepped down today.

It quoted road tests carried out by the global Council on Clean Transportation (ICCT) which found that BMW’s X3 xDrive equipped with 20d diesel motors produce gas emissions that are 11 times higher than European limits. He said that it was unclear how many vehicles in Europe had been affected and said that the number would be “clarified in the coming days”.

Volkswagen said it is “working intensely” to solve the problem and that it “does not tolerate any kind of violation of laws whatsoever”.

The 62-year old Muller will have the responsibility of guiding Volkswagen through this period of difficulty and winning back the trust of its customers and dealers.

Horn acknowledged this week that the company had “totally screwed up” by deceiving USA regulators about how much its diesel cars pollute.

Christian Stadler, professor of strategic management at the Warwick Business School, said he was surprised at the scale of the VW’s potential infringement but noted that companies that transgressed USA regulations rarely pay the full fine that could be imposed. “I am clearing the way for this fresh start with my resignation”.

VW said in a statement on its websites that it could not say which models and years of construction were affected, adding it would provide further information as soon as possible.

VW conceded that the costs it is booking in the third quarter are “subject to revaluation” in light of its investigations and that 2015 earnings targets will be adjusted.

“We are getting lots of phone calls asking ‘What is the likely impact of this?'” said an insider at a major Volkswagen dealership in Britain, who declined to be named.

The company has told officials that the vehicles in question included VW cars with 1.6-liter and 2-liter diesel engines in Europe, German Transport Minister Alexander Dobrindt said Thursday.