Scandal-wracked car giant Volkswagen will choose a new boss on Friday to lead it out of crisis after chief executive Martin Winterkorn resigned on Wednesday, insisting he knew nothing of manipulated diesel emissions.
The 68 year-old engineer was head of VW since 2007 and earned the name “Mr Quality” for his love of detail. On Tuesday he apologised for the fraud but vowed to stay on and clear up the most serious scandal in VW’s 78-year history.
After an eight-hour crisis board meeting on Wednesday, however, Mr Winterkorn offered his resignation, expressing “shock” at the scale of the fraud, accepting responsibility but insisting he was “not aware of any wrongdoing” on his part.
“Volkswagen needs a fresh start,” said Mr Winterkorn. “I am clearing the way for this with my resignation.”
As VW faces multiple investigations and class-action lawsuits around the world, the company filed criminal charges against itself in Germany.
Mr Stephan Weil, state premier in VW’s home state of Lower Saxony, which holds 20 per cent of voting shares, said the company would “ensure that those responsible are punished severely”.
On Friday VW’s board meets, not as expected to renew Dr Winterkorn’s three-year contract but to choose his successor.
Admission
Four men, all from inside the VW group, are likely replacements: Audi chairman Rupert Stadler; Porsche boss Matthias Müller; incoming Volkswagen brand boss Herbert Diess; and Volkswagen’s director of development, Hans-Jakob Neusser.
Last Friday, Volkswagen admitted that its diesel cars were programmed to cheat on emissions tests carried out by the US Environmental Protection Agency.
The software could detect when the car was being tested and ran treatments to reduce nitrogen oxide (NOx) emissions. Out on the road, however, the cars were discovered to produce pollutants up to 40 times the legal limits. NOx emissions are known to be a major contributor to serious respiratory disease.
On Tuesday the scandal expanded from a US to a global scandal after the world’s largest car company admitted the manipulation affected some 11 million vehicles worldwide were affected.
As its share price collapsed, VW, employing 600,000 people worldwide across 12 brands, set aside €6.5 billion to cover looming fines.
What remains unclear is how it affects Irish motorists. VW Group Ireland has declined to confirm how many Irish cars are involved. But the engine at the centre of US scandal – a two-litre turbodiesel – is believed to have been sold in Ireland. Over the years in question nearly 38,000 two-litre diesels were sold across the brands of Audi, Skoda, Seat and the VW brand.
