While showing off the Electric BUDD-e concept at the North American International Auto Show, Volkswagen Chairman Dr. Herbert Diess took the opportunity to address the ongoing EPA scandal.
Diess began his part of the presentation by saying, "2016 will be one of the most challenging, but also one of the most important years in the history of Volkswagen passenger cars. We know that we have let down our customers and dealers, the authorities and the American people and am truly sorry for that."
He also said, "We at Volkswagen are disappointed that this could happen within the company we love," before adding that the company is "committed to making things right."
Diess revealed they are working to correct the problems in 8.5 million cars in Europe, where the company has already worked with officials to come up with a solution.
In talking about the U.S. market, Diess said, "We are confident that we will develop good, approved solutions for our US customers too."
He said they are in "an ongoing and constructive dialog" with the EPA.
"We've made much progress over the past couple of weeks, and so I'm very optimistic that we will find a solution soon," Diess said.
Diess ended his update on the situation by saying, "Our most important goal for 2016 is to win back the trust in our brand and to this end, we are redesigning Volkswagen for the future in terms of strategy, mindset, products and technologies. We are creating a new Volkswagen."
Volkswagen is trying to repair its image after it was discovered that many of their cars were equipped with software or devices that improved performance when they were tested for emissions.
