Four former executives from Volkswagen sentenced Monday to prison for their role in the scandal, which mainly changed the European car market. The decision, after a three -year trial in Germany’s Bronzechoug, marked the latest chapter of the 10 -year -long story, which renoiled the continent’s relationship with diesel technology.
Jeans Headler, who oversees the diesel engine development, was sentenced to four and a half years, which the judges called “especially serious” fraud. His team installed the software that allowed vehicles to identify the emission test, temporarily increases the pollution control during the inspection while the rest of the time was dirty.
The effect of this scandal extends far more than the corporate board rooms. Prior to 2015, diesel vehicles commanded half of Europe’s car market, which was marketed as an environmentally friendly alternative to petrol. Today, that number is only 10 % of the new sales of cars.
The whole matter also intensified Europe’s transfer to electricity. Electric vehicles and plugin hybrids now contribute to 25 % of the new sales of cars, while Volkswagen itself has become Europe’s leading EV manufacturer, which sells three times more battery -powered cars as Tesla in April, New York Times reported.