Volkswagen emissions scandal: A timeline
Summary
TLDRVolkswagen, once the world's leading automaker, admitted to rigging 11 million vehicles globally to cheat on emissions tests, leading to a significant scandal. Scientists at West Virginia University discovered software that detected test conditions and altered engine performance to appear cleaner. Emissions were found to be up to 40 times the legal limit. The company faced lawsuits, CEO resignations, and a massive $18 billion set aside to address the crisis, including buybacks and fixes for affected US vehicles. The scandal resulted in the arrest of an executive for fraud and Clean Air Act violations.
Takeaways
- 🚗 Volkswagen, once the world's top automaker, fell to number two due to a major scandal involving emissions test cheating.
- 🔍 Scientists at West Virginia University discovered that Volkswagen used software to cheat on clean air tests, making emissions appear cleaner than they actually were.
- 🌟 The emissions were found to be up to 40 times higher than legal limits during normal driving conditions.
- 🇺🇸 The US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced that Volkswagen manipulated its diesel cars to perform better on emissions tests.
- 🌐 Volkswagen admitted to rigging 11 million vehicles worldwide, not just in the US, indicating a global scale of the problem.
- 🛑 Amid the scandal, Volkswagen halted the sale of diesel cars in the US and CEO Martin Winterkorn resigned, later replaced by Matthias Müller.
- 💸 Volkswagen faced endless lawsuits from customers whose cars lost value due to the cheating software.
- 👮♂️ German police raided Volkswagen's headquarters, and later French and Italian offices, in search of incriminating documents as part of the investigation.
- 💼 Nine managers were suspended by Volkswagen for their suspected involvement in the scandal.
- 💵 Volkswagen agreed to pay up to $14.7 billion to settle the issue, a record amount for an automaker, which included compensation for vehicle owners and measures to buy back or fix the affected cars.
- 🚨 A Volkswagen executive was arrested by US federal prosecutors for allegedly conspiring to defraud customers and violate the Clean Air Act.
Q & A
What was the primary reason for Volkswagen's fall from being the world's top automaker?
-Volkswagen fell from being the world's top automaker due to a scandal where they admitted to rigging 11 million vehicles worldwide to cheat on emissions tests.
Which group of scientists initially discovered Volkswagen's emissions test cheating?
-A group of scientists at West Virginia University discovered that Volkswagen was using software in its diesel cars to cheat on clean air tests.
How did the software used by Volkswagen cheat on emissions tests?
-The software detected when the car was being tested and made the engine run differently, making emissions seem cleaner than they ordinarily were.
What were the legal implications of the emissions levels found in Volkswagen's diesel cars?
-The emissions were found to be up to 40 times higher than legal limits.
How did the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) respond to the discovery of Volkswagen's cheating?
-The US EPA announced that Volkswagen was manipulating its diesel cars to score better on emissions tests.
What actions did Volkswagen take after admitting to the rigging of vehicles?
-Volkswagen admitted to rigging half a million cars in the US and halted the sale of diesel cars. CEO Martin Winterkorn apologized and resigned.
Who replaced Martin Winterkorn as CEO after his resignation?
-Matthias Müller, the head of VW's Porsche brand, replaced Martin Winterkorn as CEO.
What financial measures did Volkswagen set up to compensate affected vehicle owners?
-Volkswagen set up a fund to compensate owners and tapped mediator Kenneth Feinberg to decide how much each owner should receive.
How much did Volkswagen agree to pay to settle the emissions scandal?
-Volkswagen agreed to pay up to $14.7 billion to settle the issue, which is much more than any other automaker has paid for wrongdoing.
What was the role of the 'defeat device' in the emissions scandal?
-The 'defeat device' was the software used by Volkswagen to cheat on emissions tests by detecting when the car was being tested and altering the engine's performance accordingly.
What legal actions were taken against Volkswagen executives in relation to the emissions scandal?
-US prosecutors alleged that Volkswagen executives knew about the defeat device in July 2015 but chose to keep regulators in the dark. One executive was arrested for allegedly conspiring to defraud customers, impede regulators, and violate the Clean Air Act.
Outlines
🚗 Volkswagen Emissions Scandal
Volkswagen, once the world's leading automaker, admitted to rigging 11 million vehicles globally to cheat on emissions tests. The scandal began when scientists at West Virginia University discovered that Volkswagen diesel cars used software to detect when the car was being tested, altering the engine performance to make emissions appear cleaner. The actual emissions were found to be up to 40 times higher than legal limits. Despite initial denials, the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) confirmed the manipulation, leading to Volkswagen admitting to the rigging in the US and later globally. The company faced a halt in diesel car sales, a CEO resignation, and endless lawsuits from customers. The scandal also led to raids at Volkswagen's headquarters and offices in France and Italy by authorities seeking incriminating documents.
Mindmap
Keywords
💡Volkswagen
💡Emissions tests
💡Rigging
💡Defeat device
💡West Virginia University
💡US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)
💡Martin Winterkorn
💡Lawsuits
💡Compensation
💡Michael Horn
💡Clean Air Act
Highlights
Volkswagen, once the world's top automaker, fell to number two due to the emissions test scandal.
West Virginia University scientists discovered Volkswagen's use of software to cheat on clean air tests.
The software detected when cars were being tested, altering engine performance to appear cleaner.
Actual emissions were found to be up to 40 times higher than legal limits.
Volkswagen initially denied the claims to US officials.
The US Environmental Protection Agency announced Volkswagen's manipulation of diesel cars for better emissions test scores.
Volkswagen admitted to rigging 11 million vehicles worldwide to bypass emission laws.
CEO Martin Winterkorn resigned, replaced by Porsche brand head Matias Müller.
Volkswagen halted the sale of diesel cars in the US and faced endless lawsuits from customers.
German headquarters were raided by police searching for incriminating documents.
Volkswagen set up a fund to compensate owners, mediated by Kenneth Feinberg.
Nine managers were suspended for their suspected involvement in the scandal.
Volkswagen reached a deal to buy back or fix half a million US cars involved in the emissions cheat.
The company set aside about $18 billion to deal with the scandal's costs.
Volkswagen agreed to pay up to $14.7 billion to settle the issue, more than any other automaker for wrongdoing.
US prosecutors alleged that Volkswagen Executives knew about the defeat device in July 2015 but concealed it from regulators.
An executive was arrested for allegedly conspiring to defraud customers and violate the Clean Air Act.
Transcripts
once the world's top automaker
Volkswagen has fallen to number two one
reason the company admits it rigged 11
million Vehicles worldwide to cheat on
emissions tests here's a breakdown of
the Scandal blowby
blow a group of scientists at West
Virginia University discovered that
Volkswagen was using software in its
diesel cars to cheat on clean air tests
the software detects when the car is
being tested the engine then runs
different making emissions seem cleaner
than they ordinarily are they find
emissions are up to 40 times higher than
legal limits but the company repeatedly
denies the claims to us
officials the US Environmental
Protection Agency announces that
Volkswagen was manipulating its diesel
cars to score better on emissions
[Music]
tests Volkswagen admits rigging half a
million cars in the US to work around
emission laws but the company's problems
are bigger than that it admits the
problem is global in scale affecting 11
million cars
worldwide amid calls to fix the affected
Vehicles VW halts the sale of diesel
cars in the US CEO Martin wintercorn
apologizes and resigns he's replaced by
Matias Müller the head of vws Porsche
brand meanwhile Volkswagen is hit by
endless lawsuits from customers upset
that their cars have lost value because
of the
software Volkswagen's German
headquarters are raided by police in
search of incriminating documents as
German prosecutors investigate
Volkswagen says they are cooperating and
anyone involved will face the full
consequences days later the French and
Italian offices are also
raided Michael Horn head of Volkswagon
in the US testifies to us lawmakers
blaming the Scandal on a few Engineers
senior management was not involved he
[Music]
says nine managers suspected of
involvement in the Scandal are suspended
by the
company Volkswagen says it will set up a
fund to compensate owners tapping
mediator K finberg to decide how much
each should
get another exec is out this time it's
Michael Horn CEO of Volkswagen group of
America he
resigns Volkswagen reaches a deal to to
buy back or fix half a million Us cars
involved in the emissions cheet the
company says the price tag for the
crisis is double its original estimate
it sets aside about $18 billion to deal
with the cost of the
Scandal BW agrees to pay up to
$14.7 billion to settle the issue that's
much more than any other automaker has
paid for wrongdoing most of that money
will go to owners of the affected
vehicles in addition to compens compens
ation for lost value Volkswagen will
have to either buy back or fix the cars
us prosecutors alleged that Volkswagen
Executives knew about the so-called
defeat device in July of 2015 but chose
to keep Regulators in the dark one
executive is arrested by federal
prosecutors for allegedly conspiring to
defraud customers impede regulators and
violate the Clean Air Act the first
arrest made in the company's emission
scandal
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