VW Receives Approval to Sell 2015 Model-Year Diesels in the U.S.

For the first time since September 2015, Volkswagen will be able to sell diesel cars in the U.S., at least on a limited scale.

The EPA has cleared Volkswagen Group to sell 2015 model-year diesels after an approved software update, company spokeswoman Jeannine Ginivan told Bloomberg. The fix also includes updates to the engine hardware, but dealers don’t have to wait until early next year for the parts to become available.

“We are still finalizing the details of this program and will provide more information on its implementation at the appropriate time,” Ginivan said in a statement.

Restarting diesel sales in the U.S. is a small—yet important—step in the right direction for VW. The EPA approval only covers around 67,000 diesel models from 2015, of which 12,000 are sitting on dealer lots. The company has admitted to installing cheat devices on nearly 500,000 cars in the U.S. to evade emissions tests.

No new diesel models will be sold in the U.S. at least through the 2018 model year, VW also confirmed. Volkswagen Group of America CEO Hinrich Woebcken said last year that clean diesels won’t be at the core of the automaker’s U.S. brand identity going forward. Instead, the automaker is investing heavily in electric vehicles.

Source: Bloomberg

The post VW Receives Approval to Sell 2015 Model-Year Diesels in the U.S. appeared first on Motor Trend.

from Motor Trend http://ift.tt/2oloCo8