VW Reaches Settlement Over 3.0-Liter Diesel Vehicles

Dec 22, 2016

Volkswagen and federal prosecutors this week reached a settlement under which the embattled German automaker would recall or buy back thousands of remaining diesel vehicles affected by its emissions scandal.

VW previously reached a $14.7 billion settlement to address 2.0-liter diesel vehicles, which comprised most of the nearly 600,000 cars equipped with software to manipulate their emissions levels during official testing.

Attorneys for the company and state and federal prosecutors, meanwhile, continued to discuss a resolution for more than 80,000 3.0-liter diesel vehicles.

“The settlement marks another significant step in holding Volkswagen accountable for cheating Americans out of the promise of cleaner air by selling vehicles equipped with defeat devices,” assistant attorney general John Cruden said in a statement.

Under the tentative agreement announced Tuesday, which is pending approval by a federal court next year, VW would recall 83,000 vehicles from model years 2009 through 2016.

The automaker will be required to buy back or terminate leases of the older VW models, but could give owners the option of modifying their engines to comply with clean air standards if repairs are approved by regulators.

Newer models, however, could be recalled and fixed without buying them back entirely.

VW will also be required to pay $225 for environmental remediation projects; reports suggested that the price tag for the overall settlement would be about $1 billion.

“We are committed to earning back the trust of all our stakeholders and thank our customers and dealers in the United States for their patience as the process moves forward," Volkswagen Group of America President and CEO Hinrich Woebcken said in a statement.

Although the settlement largely resolves the automaker's civil dispute with the Justice Department, Environmental Protection Agency, California officials and select consumers, DOJ officials noted that it does not address additional civil cases or potential criminal liability.