DIESEL GRAVEYARD
VW dumps cars in desert after emissions scandal
GLINTING in the sun, thousands of Volkswagen’s diesel cars lie in a gigantic desert graveyard.
Vehicles worth millions are being mothballed at the California site in the wake of the emissions test scandal.
The German company – which owns both Volkswagen and Audi marques – has paid almost €6billion to buy back about 350,000 cars from US customers under the terms of the ‘dieselgate’ settlements.
Most of the vehicles are being held at 37 secure storage facilities around the US, including this desert site near Victorville, California – where they are parked in neat rows almost as far as the eye can see. Other locations include a disused football stadium in Detroit and a former paper mill in Minnesota.
VW spokesman Jeannine Ginivan said the vehicles are being stored temporarily and routinely maintained so they can be re-sold or exported once regulators approve emissions modifications. Victorville’s dry desert conditions ensure the vehicles are perfectly preserved. The scandal erupted in 2015 after it emerged ‘defeat devices’ in the cars were designed to show misleadingly low pollution levels in tests. The scandal has so far cost the company €20.5billion.
VW must buy back or fix 85% of the vehicles involved by June next year or face higher payments for emissions.