Volkswagen's top U.S. executive apologized Thursday as the emissions-rigging scandal enveloping the world's largest automaker deepened and U.S. lawmakers said the company violated the public's trust. (Oct. 8) AP
Executive tells Congress automaker will accept 'full responsibility' for emissions cheating scandal
Volkswagen U.S. CEO Michael Horn on Thursday apologized for the company's emissions scandal in testimony before a Congressional committee, pledged to fix cars and said three people in Germany have been suspended.
He said he believes the company's American workers did not know about the matter, saying "rogue" German software engineers were likely to blame. Their motivation may have been an effort to meet cost measures, he said.
Horn said for the first time that the automaker would fix the 482,000 U.S. diesel cars involved in the scandal, not buy them back from consumers, though he indicated the company is weighing compensating owners in some capacity.
But Horn could not give a timeline for repairs of 325,000 of those vehicles — the oldest models dating back to 2009 that will require hardware changes. The company is still developing a fix for those cars, but it could take years to repair them all due to the complex hardware and software changes that will be required, he said.
Fixes for the rest of the vehicles involved in the scandal could start as soon as early 2016 or mid 2016, Horn said. (Horn initially said the largest group of vehicles numbered 430,000 but the company has said he misspoke and the correct number is 325,000.)
Appearing before the House Energy and Commerce Committee's Oversight and Investigations Subcommittee, Horn testified under oath that the company would accept "full responsibility" for fitting software on diesel cars that fooled regulators into believing the vehicles were compliant with emissions regulations.
Volkswagen has acknowledged that about 11 million diesel cars worldwide — including 482,000 in the U.S. — were rigged with the so-called defeat device.
He called the situation "deeply troubling" but pushed back against accusations that Volkswagen has a pervasive culture of corruption, saying it does "not reflect the company that I know."
The cheating has exposed the German automaker to Environmental Protection Agency fines of up to $18 billion, a U.S. Justice Department criminal probe, consumer lawsuits and investigations in Europe. The cars are emitting harmful pollutants at rates of up to 40 times acceptable U.S. standards.
Several members of the committee said the violations reflect a broader problem with the auto industry in the wake of scandals at Toyota, General Motors, Fiat Chrysler and supplier Takata.
"The American public are not crash-test dummies and should not be treated as such," U.S. Rep. Frank Pallone, D-New Jersey, said, adding that he believes there's a "pervasive culture of corruption" in the auto industry.
Horn is facing questions from members of Congress for about two hours on Thursday morning. Two EPA officials are expected to testify in the afternoon on the agency's emissions standards and enforcement role.
Fixes to the vehicles involved in the scandal will likely preserve fuel economy ratings but "there might be a slight impact on performance," Horn said.
The automaker is temporarily banned from selling diesel cars fitted with the manipulative software until it can deliver a fix. On Thursday, the company confirmed that it will not sell 2016 diesel cars in the U.S.
Volkswagen is now subsidizing U.S. dealers to help them navigate the crisis, Horn said, calling dealer profitability his top priority.
U.S. Rep. Fred Upton, R-Mich., chairman of the House Energy and Commerce Committee, said Volkswagen must "pay a steep price" for a culture of "cheating and betrayal."
"I don't know what the penalty should be, but it should be more than a slap on the wrist," U.S. Rep. Joe Barton, R-Texas, said.
U.S. Rep. Diana DeGette, D-Colo., ranking member of the subcommittee, pressed Horn to deliver answers.
"You haven't revealed who is responsible for this scheme," she said.
Horn, who has not been implicated in the scandal, said the company's internal investigation is ongoing. Horn said he believes no American employees knew about the matter until recently, confirming statements by Volkswagen global CEO Matthias Mueller earlier this week that the cheating originated from Germany.
"My understanding is this was not a corporate decision," Horn said. "This was something individuals did."
Horn, who has been in his current job since early 2014, is known within the auto industry for his candor and his popularity among dealers. He told the committee that he learned about a "possible emissions non-compliance" issue in spring 2014.
But he said he did not know about the manipulative software until Sept. 3, 2015, about two weeks before the EPA disclosed the matter.
Autor: Nathan Bomey on Twitter @NathanBomey
Fecha: 8 de Octubre 2015
