Volkswagen CEO apologizes for emissions scandal at the 44th Tokyo Motor Show in Tokyo, Japan, Wednesday October 28, 2015.

 

Volkswagen’s new chief executive Herbert Diess apologized at the Tokyo auto show on Wednesday Oct 28,2015 for the automaker’s emissions-cheating scandal, promising to win back customer trust, and said it will delay the launch of a diesel vehicle in Japan. 

The head of VW’s Japan division Sven Stein, who appeared at the VW booth before Volkswagen’s new chief executive Herbert Diess, bowed for several seconds in a Japanese style of apology. Volkswagen’s new chief executive Herbert Diess made no bow.

“On behalf of my entire company, I’d like to apologize,” said Volkswagen’s new chief executive Herbert Diess, a recent hire from BMW, stressing that the priority is to fix the problem, uncover what happened and make sure the scandal never happens again.

Volkswagen is engulfed in a crisis after U.S. authorities found its diesel vehicles had software installed that allowed the cars to cheat emissions tests. On the road, the vehicles were in fact emitting pollutants at levels many times higher than advertised. The automaker faces recalls for millions of vehicles and punishing fines.

“We are doing everything we can to bring back this trust in our brand,” said Mr. Diess.

The head of VW’s Japan division Sven Stein acknowledged after the presentation that sales in Japan had plummeted, more than by a third, although other factors besides the scandal, such as the lack of new models, compared to last year, may also be behind the plunge