Heads set to roll in VW crisis
High-ranking executives to be fired today over emissions scandal
VOLKSWAGEN will start firing people responsible for rigging US emissions tests and shake up management today‚ two sources familiar with the plans said‚ as the company tries to get to grips with the biggest scandal in its 78-year history.
Two of the VW group’s highest-ranking engineers would be forced to quit as the firm pushed steps to clear up the diesel emissions scandal, Bild reported yesterday, citing unnamed company sources.
Audi research and development boss Ulrich Hackenberg, a long-time VW brand executive, and Porsche’s engine chief Wolfgang Hatz would be dismissed at a meeting of the supervisory board today, the newspaper said.
The supervisory board of Europe’s biggest car manufacturer is meeting today to decide a successor to chief executive Martin Winterkorn‚ who resigned on Wednesday.
The sources said it would give initial findings from an internal investigation into who was responsible for programming some diesel cars to detect when they were being tested and alter the running of the engines to conceal their true emissions.
Top managers could also be replaced‚ even if they did not know about the deception‚ with US chief Michael Horn and group sales chief Christian Klingler seen as potentially vulnerable.
Volkswagen shares have plunged around 20% since US regulators said the company could face up to $18-billion (R252-billion) in penalties for falsifying emissions tests.
The company said on Tuesday 11-million of its cars globally were fitted with engines that had shown a noticeable deviation in emission levels between testing and road use.
Regulators in Europe and Asia have said they will also investigate‚ while VW faces criminal inquiries and law- suits from cheated customers.
When he resigned‚ Winterkorn denied he knew of any wrongdoing, but said the company needed a fresh start.
“There will be further personnel consequences in the next days and we are calling for those consequences‚” Volkswagen board member Olaf Lies told the Bavarian broadcasting network‚ without elaborating.
The heads of Volkswagen’s Porsche brand‚ Matthias Mueller; Audi brand‚ Rupert Stadler; and VW brand‚ Herbert Diess‚ were seen as the front-runners to succeed Winterkorn‚ three people familiar with the matter said.
Motor dealers and consumer groups alike expressed frustration yesterday at a lack of information from VW about the implications for customers of the scandal.
VW said it could not say which models and years of construction were affected, but would give more information as soon as possible.
“It goes without saying that we will take full responsibility and cover costs for the necessary arrangements and measures. But this process will take time,” VW said.
Market research company YouGov said it had recorded a big hit to the VW brand in the United States and Britain, where VW has tumbled into the lowest position among 34 brands.
VW said new diesel models covered by the European Union’s Euro 6 emissions standards met legal requirements.
The software in question did not affect handling or consumption, or control emissions, it said. – Reuters