The Volkswagen (VW) Group has announced a package of measures aimed "to improve air quality in Germany through fleet renewal." The measures primarily center on scrappage deals for old diesels in 14 German cities.
Image: ODD ANDERSEN/AFP/GettyImages
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VW announced on Thursday a series of measures which the carmaker says will improve air quality in Germany through the renewal of the existing fleet of diesel vehicles on the country's roads.
First reported on Thursday in the German tabloid Bild and by the news agency DPA, drivers of various VW Group cars in the 14 most polluted German cities will be offered generous trade-in rates by the carmaker for their older diesels in order to persuade them to buy new ones.
The trade-in/scrappage deals will apply to vehicles across the Volkswagen Group stable, including from the Seat, Skoda and Audi brands. The premium offered may go as high as €10,000 ($11,518), according to the news agency DPA, although that will only apply to especially large vehicles.
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Volkswagen said on Thursday that the amount offered for each car would depend on the size of the vehicle, and said discounts as high as €8,000 would apply.
'A comprehensive package of measures'
"The successful environmental incentives for scrappage of Euro 1 to Euro 4 diesel vehicles of any make are again being offered by some of the Group’s brands throughout Germany," the carmaker said in a statement.
"Vehicle keepers in the 14 cities classified by the federal government as having the highest levels of pollution and in the surrounding areas will be entitled to the new exchange premiums. These premiums will be paid in addition to the vehicle’s residual value when trading in a Euro-4 or Euro-5 diesel vehicle of any make. The environmental incentives and exchange premiums come into immediate effect and are valid until further notice."
VW added that brands from across its commercial stable, such as Audi, Seat and Skoda, would be announcing details of their own specific scrappage schemes.
The deal unveiled was based on a combination of trade-in incentive schemes and still unspecified retrofit options for older diesels. So far, the major German car manufacturers have provided scant information on what part in the deal they will play, particularly in the area of hardware retrofits.
The Volkswagen statement on Thursday did not mention the topic of hardware retrofits on polluting diesels — a contentious topic for carmakers given that it is the most expensive option, from their perspective.
"Volkswagen’s first environmental incentive from August 2017 to June 2018 successfully demonstrated that systematic fleet renewal is a swift and efficient way of improving air quality," the statement from the carmaker said, noting that 210,000 old diesel vehicles were taken off the roads "and replaced by modern, cleaner models" during the period it question.
Dieselgate: A timeline
VW's emissions scandal plunged the automaker into its deepest crisis ever. It brought with it everlasting damage to VW's reputation and massive fees and penalties — not to mention compensation claims from car owners.
Image: picture-alliance/dpa/J. Stratenschulte
The disaster unfolds — September 2015
About two weeks after Volkswagen admitted behind closed doors to US environmental regulators that it had installed cheating software in some 11 million of its diesel vehicles worldwide, the Environmental Protection Agency shared that information with the public. It was September 18, 2015. The ensuing crisis would eventually take a few unexpected turns.
Image: picture-alliance/dpa/O. Spata
The boss must go, long live the boss — September 2015
Volkswagen's then-CEO Martin Winterkorn (above) had little choice but to step down several days after news of the scandal broke. In September 2015, he tendered his resignation, but retained his other posts within the Volkswagen Group. Winterkorn's successor was Matthias Müller. Until taking the reins at VW, Müller had been the chairman at Porsche, a VW subsidiary.
Image: picture-alliance/Sven Simon
Raiding headquarters — October 2015
Regulators in the US weren't the only ones investigating VW. Authorities in Lower Saxony, the German state in which VW is based, were also scrutinizing the company. On October 8 2015, state prosecutors raided VW's headquarters along with several other corporate locations.
Image: picture-alliance/dpa/P. Steffen
Hell breaks loose — January 2016
On January 4, 2016, the US government filed a lawsuit against VW in Detroit, accusing the German automaker of fraud and violations of American climate protection regulations. The lawsuit sought up to $46 billion for violations of the Clean Air Act.
Image: picture-alliance/dpa/A. Burgi
Quit or forced out? — March 2016
In March 2016, the head of VW in the US, Michael Horn, resigned. In the initial days and weeks after the scandal broke, he was the one US authorities turned to for information. He issued an official apology on behalf of the automaker, asking for the public's forgiveness.
Image: Getty Images/C. Somodevilla
Settlement — October 2016
On October 25 2016, a US judge approved a final settlement that would have VW pay $15.3 billion. In addition, affected cars would be retrofitted with better, non-deceptive hardware and software, or else VW would buy them back completely from customers.
Image: picture-alliance/dpa/P. Pleul
Imitators — July 2017
When dieselgate first emerged in 2015, analysts said it was likely other car makers were also cheating tests. But it wasn't until 2017 that other companies were targeted in probes. In July, German authorities launched investigations into luxury car makers Porsche and Daimler for allegedly cheating emissions tests. Others, such as Audi and Chrysler, have also been hit by similar allegations.
Image: picture-alliance/dpa/F. Kraufmann
Public still supportive — December 2017
Despite dieselgate, VW has managed to keep the emissions scandal from utterly tarnishing its image. According to several polls, between 55 to 67 percent of Germans continue to trust the automaker. In the US, polls show that roughly 50 percent still believe the German company produces worthwhile vehicles.
Image: picture-alliance/dpa/C. Klose
Fuming over monkeys — January 2018
In late January, however, VW suffered another heavy blow over reports that the company experimented on monkeys and made the animals inhale diesel fumes. To make matters worse, a separate experiment that had humans inhale relatively harmless nitrogen dioxide was revealed at the same time. Some media wrongly interpreted this to mean humans were also inhaling toxic fumes.
Image: picture-alliance/dpa/F. Gentsch
Canadian court demands millions — January 2020
Years after the scandal that caused Volkswagen to pay CAN$2.4 billion (US$1.83 billion), a court in Toronto order a further fine of CAN$196.5 million. Volkswagen pleaded guilty of violating in environmental laws. Prosecutor Tom Lemon noted that the fine was "26 times the highest fine ever for a Canadian environmental offence."
