VW to fire 3 executives as emissions scandal deepens

VOLKSWAGEN cars in Europe have been confirmed to have the same “device defeating” software that has embroiled the company in a global controversy.

The government’s ruling affects diesel models containing “defeat devices” – software which is able to change the engine’s performance and run cleaner during official testing.

Volkswagen could be facing fines in the USA of up to $US18 billion, and chief executive Martin Winterkorn has resigned over the recall.

Bozena Michalowska-Howells, consumer goods expert at law firm Leigh Day, said: “In the last two days we have been inundated by Volkswagen owners who bought these vehicles specifically due to their alleged reduced fuel emissions and who are outraged by the company’s actions”.

The supervisory board said it would announce Winterkorn’s successor at a board meeting later on Friday.

The EA189 engines at the centre of the emissions scandal had also been fitted to several Skoda and Seat models sold in the UK.

Alexander Dobrindt said it was not known how numerous 11 million vehicles affected were in Europe.

The agency had been focused its diesel testing on big-rig trucks because they are more common than diesel cars and account for more pollution in the US, said Christopher Grundler, director of the EPA’s Office of Transportation and Air Quality.

Few new details have been offered by the manufacturer on the fallout from the scandal – but a number of employees have been put on leave until crucial details are cleared up. Proportionately, this suggests that between 1million and 1.5 million diesel cars in the United Kingdom are likely to be affected.

Other vehicle companies have seen the Volkswagen scandal weigh down their shares. So far, the problems seem to be connected to the way that emissions tests are conducted in the U.S., however automotive bodies from around the world have opened their own investigations, and emissions manipulation in Europe has been announced just this morning.

Mr Winterkorn said on Wednesday he took responsibility for the “irregularities” found by USA inspectors in Volkswagen’s diesel engines, but insisted he had personally done nothing wrong.

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency discovered that certain models produce emissions 40 times higher than the results from lab tests had shown.

Separately, BMW shares dropped by 10 percent on reports the false tests had been used by other carmakers. However, after the test, the software would return emissions to an illegal level.