While the German automaker and emissions regulators investigate exactly which vehicles have been affected by the “cheating” software and as the company retrofits the impacted models to pass emissions tests, those looking for a diesel vehicle will have to shop elsewhere.
In the US, about 20 percent of the cars sold by Volkswagen this year were diesels. When news broke of the automaker’s dishonest software, sales of TDI models dropped to 11.7 percent and are expected to dip lower this month. While that’s a substantial chunk of the brand’s overall U.S. sales, it’s nothing by comparison to Europe, where TDIs make up about half of Volkswagen’s fleet.
There will still be some Volkswagen diesel vehicles that can be sold in Europe and the states, but all that use the EA 189/Euro 5 engine are off the table. That means almost all small and midsize models like the Audi A3 and Volkswagen Golf with TDI engines will be pulled from dealer lots.
As previously reported, models equipped with urea-injected TDIs (AdBlue) are in the clear. Volkswagen plans to update all EA 189 engines in unsold cars by November and will work to fix all affected models in customer hands over the next few months.
The fallout of this scandal is still playing out, but for now, VW Group is in the process of a massive restructuring to consolidate efforts, has fired several department heads (including its CEO), has cancelled major vehicle projects planned over the next few years, and has set aside $7.3 billion to cover costs related to recalls, fines, and other expenses related to this investigation.
“Only when everything has been put on the table, when no single stone has been left unturned, only then will people begin to trust us again,” newly appointed VW Group CEO Matthias Muller stated.
