Volkswagen wants to extract 3 billion euros ($3.41 billion) in price cuts from its suppliers to help mitigate the costs of the emissions scandal that has rocked the company, German newspaper Handelsblatt reported. An investigation into the suspected fraud at Europe’s largest automaker was launched last week.
Advertisement
“We will support prosecutors as best we can in investigating the matter and the people responsible”, it said in a statement. He was replaced by Porsche boss Matthias Mueller. So far, four other individuals, including three managers tasked with engine development, have also been suspended.
The scandal, which ultimately affected 11 million vehicles worldwide, sparked the resignation of VW’s CEO and will result in the largest recall in the company’s history.
The report bases its rankings on measuring “brand strength”, a score that takes into account “the country’s investments, societal well-being and its goods and services”, according to Ad Age. “The more defensively it approaches the question, the more hard it will be”.
Minister Alexander Dobrindt spoke Wednesday evening after the automaker replied to German authorities’ demand to present a timetable for a solution.
The unit said it had set up a website for customers to see if their vehicles, including nearly 55,000 Volkswagen branded passenger cars, 5,000 Skodas and more than 17,000 Volkswagen commercial vehicles, had the affected EA 189 diesel engines.
Volkswagen New Zealand says it is likely to start recalling cars early next year, once it has identified all owners potentially affected by the emissions scandal.
Advertisement
The defeat devices then turn off pollution controls when the vehicle is on the road, allowing it to spew out harmful levels of toxic gases. The company added that it’s also not yet clear whether the software was banned under European rules.
