Though VW and USA regulators have not yet announced a fix for illegal emissions under a nationwide recall, Horn was prepared to the company was “determined to make things right”.
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U.S. CEO Michael Horn tells lawmakers that the company may pay customers for a loss in resale values because of the scandal.
“I didn’t have any reason to expect our vehicles included such a device” before that time, said Horn before the House Energy and Commerce’s Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations.
According to the Los Angeles Times, the software installed on affected vehicles lowered the amount of nitrogen oxide emitted when undergoing emission tests.
“The dealer profitability in this country is my first objective”, Horn told lawmakers.
Horn said he was made aware of possible emission issues in summer of 2014, but only found out the vehicles contained a device to cheat on emissions tests early last month.
Volkswagen’s USA boss has admitted his company’s attempt to blame the emissions scandal on low level employees was “hard to believe”.
“I would like to offer a honest apology, a honest apology for Volkswagen’s use of a software programme that served to defeat the regular emissions testing regime”, said the chief executive of Volkswagen USA.
Upton is chairman of the House Energy and Commerce Committee.
Under questioning from Rep. Jan Schakowsky, D-Ill., Horn says the company isn’t considering loaner cars because the US government says the cheating diesels are safe to drive.
Sites raided “include private apartments, and it is important to guarantee the privacy of these people”, she said. “We will find remedies for our customers, and we will work to ensure that this will never happen again”, he said.
In his testimony, Horn swore he had no prior knowledge of the so-called “defeat devices”.
Eleven million vehicles worldwide are said to have been equipped with such software which means they do not respect anti-pollution standards.
He said the United Kingdom has started its own testing programme which will seek “to get to the bottom” of what the situation is for VW Group cars in the UK.
The filings come the same day Volkswagen of America CEO, Michael Horn, testified before Congress.
The carmaker has previously said the software could be installed on up to 11 million vehicles, mostly in Europe, but that for the majority of them it “does not have any effect”.
Play video “Emissions Scandal: Who’s Affected?”
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The EPA has also continued its investigation into Volkswagen’s action, working closely with the California Air Resources Board and the U.S. Department of Justice, said Christopher Grundler, director of EPA’s Office of Transportation and Air Quality at the hearing.
