Volkswagen says 11 million cars worldwide used software to cheat on emissions tests

Volkswagen admitted Tuesday that they used software to evade pollution tests in 11 million of their diesel cars worldwide. After being accused by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency of foul play late last week, Volkswagen confessed to the software, but insisted it was only used in around half a million cars in the United States. The German automaker also said Tuesday that it planned to use $7.3 billion to service affected cars, including Golf, Passat, Jetta, and Beetle diesel vehicles sold in the States between 2009 and 2015.

Shares of Volkswagen nosedived 20 percent on Tuesday, after dropping 17 percent on Monday. The head of Volkswagen in the U.S., Michael Horn, confessed that, "In my German words, we have totally screwed up."

Subscribe to The Week

Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

SUBSCRIBE & SAVE

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

Sign up