Volkswagen US sales plummet after emissions scandal

Chicago, Dec 2: Volkswagen US announced lackluster sales figures, showing a large drop, during the month of November.

Volkswagen sold fewer than 24,000 cars in the month of November, posting a drop of 24.7 percent, Xinhua quoted the group as saying on Tuesday.

Volkswagen stocks fell over one percent after the release of November sales figures, which showed the Volkswagen Golf sales falling by 64 percent from the previous year.

The famed Beetle series fell by 39.3 percent from the previous year. The Volkswagen Beetle is the second-best selling car in the world history.

The figures come in the wake of an emissions scandal in which the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) issued a notice to VW Group for violation of the Clean Air Act.

The EPA discovered that VW had manipulated its diesel engines to mislead emission tests to the effect that certain pollutants met US standards.

The EPA report indicates that the cars produced up to 40 times higher nitrogen oxide during driving than in the laboratory setting.

Volkswagen Group CEO Martin Winterkorn resigned shortly after various countries began taking legal action against the German auto maker.

Several other high ranking officers within VW Group, including those from Audi and Porsche, were suspended.

“Volkswagen is working tirelessly on an approved remedy for the affected vehicles. We would like to thank our dealers and customers for their continued patience and loyalty,” said Mark McNabb, chief operating officer, Volkswagen US.  (IANS)