Volkswagen Announces Emissions Crisis Was Overblown

The latest news about the Volkswagen diesel emissions scandal is an announcement about the myriad of lawsuits filed against the automaker, as well as an update from VW downplaying the size of the crisis.

A U.S. judicial panel announced Tuesday that the more than 500 civil lawsuits filed against Volkswagen AG will be heard by a federal judge in California. Reuters reported both VW and the U.S. Department of Justice asked the cases to be heard in Detroit, with other attorneys for the plaintiffs suggesting the cases be heard in Illinois, Ohio, New Jersey or Massachusetts. Reports also indicate nearly one-fifth of the cases against VW originated in California. Among the pending cases is one out of the state of Montana, which alleges the alleged deception on the part of VW is reason enough for buyers to be free to stop making payments.

The announcement that the lawsuits are being examined comes as the automaker announced today that the amount of vehicles impacted by the diesel emissions defeat device is actually lower than previously thought. In a statement released by VW AG, the automaker said, “Following extensive internal investigations and measurement checks, it is now clear that almost all of these model variants do correspond to the CO2 figures originally determined. This means that these vehicles can be marketed and sold without any limitations.” What this means for the diesel emissions crisis will show over time, however, for the time being it appears that VW is saying the entire crisis was overblown and stop sales orders on select Audi, VW and Porsche vehicles could soon be lifted.

According to the New York Times, the number of vehicles impacted by the diesel emissions issue has shrunk from 800,000 to 36,000.

Do you think Volkswagen is going to have to shell out billions from the 500 civil lawsuits or do you think that latest VW statement will change all of that? What is your take on how VW has handled the crisis thus far, from offering incentives to consumers to now saying the so-called crisis could be smaller than previously thought?