VW shares down again

Shares in German auto giant Volkswagen continued their downward slide in mid-day trade on Monday, shedding nearly 7 percent as the scandal over rigged pollution tests showed no sign of abating.

According to German media reports, VW had ignored warnings from staff and supplier Bosch years ago that there was an illegal emissions test rigging software in use in a large number of vehicles.

Audi said Monday that 2.1 million of its cars worldwide were fitted with the so-called defeat devices that allowed parent company VW to thwart emission tests in the US.

Audi noted that 577,000 of those units were sold in Germany and almost 13,000 in the US and added that a wide range of models were affected, including A1, A3, A6, TT, Q3 and Q5 cars.

Heads rolling

Last Friday, VW's supervisory board named Porsche chief Matthias Müller to replace ousted CEO Martin Winterkorn and indicated that ore executive heads would need to roll to make a fresh start at the Wolfsburg-based company.

Citing sources familiar with matter, Reuters reported Monday that Volkswagen had suspended the R&D chiefs of its core brand (VW), luxury division Audi and sports-car maker Porsche until the scandal was fully cleared up.

German authorities heaped pressure on the embattled carmaker, demanding it set out a timeline by October 7 as to how it would ensure its diesel cars met national emissions standards without using the cheat technology.

hg/jd (AFP, Reuters)