Volkswagen Expected to Buyback About 500K Diesels in US
Volkswagen is expected to announce buybacks of about 500,000 diesel vehicles fit with emissions cheating software in the U.S.
According to Reuters, the German automaker will be buying back all vehicles fit with its 2.0-liter diesel engine, which include the Golf, Jetta and Audi A3. The fix for the larger 3.0-liter diesel engine found in Audi and Porsche SUV models is still unclear.
VW is apparently also offering to repair the cars, but that is only if U.S. regulators deem that the fix will work.
In September of 2015, Volkswagen admitted to installing software that allowed 11 million vehicles worldwide to cheat on emissions tests. In some case, the cars were spewing up to 40 times the allowable levels of pollution.
SEE ALSO: Audi Reportedly Developed Volkswagen’s Dieselgate Software in 1999
Volkswagen will also setup a compensation fund for its owners. One report claims that each owner will get a $5,000 settlement. The fund alone is said to be close to $1 billion, not counting the cost to buyback each vehicle.
Each owner will get a cash settlement, while those who have their car bought back will receive the estimated value of the car from before the scandal broke. Owners will likely get around two years to decide what to do with their VW diesel.
Volkswagen still faces an ongoing criminal investigation and civil suit from the Justice Department and numerous other lawsuits, one of which is from the FTC over false advertising.
Details on Volkswagen’s plans will be revealed at a court hearing later today.
[Source: Reuters]
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Stephen covers all of the day-to-day events of the industry as the News Editor at AutoGuide, along with being the AG truck expert. His truck knowledge comes from working long days on the woodlot with pickups and driving straight trucks professionally. When not at his desk, Steve can be found playing his bass or riding his snowmobile or Sea-Doo. Find Stephen on <A title="@Selmer07 on Twitter" href="http://www.twitter.com/selmer07">Twitter</A> and <A title="Stephen on Google+" href="http://plus.google.com/117833131531784822251?rel=author">Google+</A>
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WOW, big news. Buybacks sound like the only viable solution ...
So what happens to the cars which are bought back? Does VW fix them and re-sell them? Crush them? Not fix them and sell them in countries where air pollution laws are not as strict?