Volkswagen CEO steps down amid diesel emissions scandal, says he did nothing wrong

Volkswagen CEO Martin Winterkorn has resigned from the company.

The move comes amid a massive scandal for the car-making giant, after it acknowledged having installed software on some 11 million diesel vehicles to circumvent emissions tests.

“I am shocked by the events of the past few days. Above all, I am stunned that misconduct on such a scale was possible in the Volkswagen Group," Winterkorn said in a statement.

"As CEO I accept responsibility for the irregularities that have been found in diesel engines and have therefore requested the Supervisory Board to agree on terminating my function as CEO of the Volkswagen Group. I am doing this in the interests of the company even though I am not aware of any wrongdoing on my part," he added.

WASHINGTON — Volkswagen’s top US executive offered deep apologies yet sought to distance himself Thursday from the emissions scandal enveloping the world’s largest automaker. He asserted that he and other top corporate officials had no knowledge of the cheating software installed in 11 million diesel cars.

Though he said he hadn’t been briefed on the preliminary findings of the ongoing internal investigation, Volkswagen of America CEO Michael Horn told a congressional subcommittee that a tiny group of software developers in Germany was responsible for the computer code that enabled the cars to trick US government emissions tests. Three lower-level managers have been suspended.

“To my understanding this was not a corporate decision, this was something individuals did,” Horn said, adding that he felt personally deceived.

That explanation left members of the House panel investigating the scheme incredulous.

“I agree it’s very hard to believe,” Horn conceded.

Janet Kornblum with her 2010 Volkswagen Jetta SportWagen in San Francisco on Sept. 24.Photo: Reuters

Rep. Chris Collins, R-N.Y., was among the lawmakers who said he could not accept VW’s characterization that “this was the work of a couple of rogue engineers.” He added, “This didn’t happen in one day.”

Collins, an engineer, said it appears that VW executives “are complicit in a massive cover-up at the highest levels that continues to this day.”

Ben_Reilly wrote:

Volkswagen CEO Martin Winterkorn has resigned from the company.

The move comes amid a massive scandal for the car-making giant, after it acknowledged having installed software on some 11 million diesel vehicles to circumvent emissions tests.

“I am shocked by the events of the past few days. Above all, I am stunned that misconduct on such a scale was possible in the Volkswagen Group," Winterkorn said in a statement.

"As CEO I accept responsibility for the irregularities that have been found in diesel engines and have therefore requested the Supervisory Board to agree on terminating my function as CEO of the Volkswagen Group. I am doing this in the interests of the company even though I am not aware of any wrongdoing on my part," he added.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/volkswagen-ceo-resigns-martin-winterkorn_5602bf8ae4b00310edf95e0f

People who bought Volkswagens because they thought they were getting a cleaner-burning engine are highly pissed, and I think the company should refund every single customer.

Lurker wrote:They will just be scape goats.