WOLFSBURG, Germany, Sept. 27 (UPI) — Embattled German automaker Volkswagen on Friday tapped an executive from Porsche as the group’s new chief — and pledged a major managerial shakeup as it tries to navigate the backlash over its attempt to get around U.S. emissions regulations.
The Volkswagen Group named Matthias Mueller as its new CEO, just days after Martin Winterkorn vacated the post in the controversy’s wake.
The automaker’s Supervisory Board selected Mueller during a meeting in Germany Friday, the company said. His new assignment takes effect immediately — however, he will remain in his post at Porsche until his replacement is found.
“My most urgent task is to win back trust for the Volkswagen Group — by leaving no stone unturned and with maximum transparency, as well as drawing the right conclusions from the current situation,” Mueller said in a statement Friday. “Under my leadership, Volkswagen will do everything it can to develop and implement the most stringent compliance and governance standards in our industry.”
Earlier this week, it was discovered that millions of diesel-powered vehicles made by Volkswagen AG were equipped with software designed to circumvent U.S. emissions regulations.
Upon detecting when an emissions test is being performed, the software would reduce the vehicle’s emissions to a legal level. However, after the test, the software would return emissions to an illegal level.
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency immediately issued a recall of 482,000 Volkswagen and Audi vehicles to eliminate the deceptive software.
It was later reported that as many as 11 million diesel-powered vehicles may be affected by the software.
Friday, Volkswagen also announced a major management shakeup at the company — including a complete reorganization of its North American operations.
The Department of Justice has launched an investigation into the matter.
