Volkswagen is set to face a new criminal trial in France related to the Dieselgate emissions scandal. French prosecutors are pursuing legal action against the automaker for deceiving consumers about the environmental performance of its TDI models. The trial, likely to occur in 2027, follows the discovery of emissions cheating devices in 11 million Volkswagen diesel engines, leading to significant pollution. The company faces a hefty fine and potential marketing restrictions, while victims' rights are also being considered.
The affair widely known as ' Dieselgate ' will go down in infamy as one of the defining automotive scandals of the 21st Century—and the rippling effects seem to be never-ending. At least that's, how we suspect Volkswagen is feeling as the German automaker prepares to face a new criminal trial over the emissions fiasco in France , according to a report from French news agency Agence France -Presse.
News of the new trial appeared on January 30, 2026, when Parisian investigators referred Volkswagen to the criminal court as a result of 'deception, by a legal entity, regarding a product causing a danger to human and animal health.' French prosecutors also plan to take action against Renault and Stellantis for diesel emission deception in the same case. An initial hearing is scheduled for December 18, 2026, indicating the actual trial is likely to take place in 2027.Volkswagen has been entangled in global litigation related to its diesel emissions defeat devices since the matter was widely brought to light in 2015. 11 million diesel engines manufactured by Volkswagen were programmed to cheat on emissions tests, and actually polluted significantly 40 times more under typical driving circumstances. Of course, automakers like Stellantis and Ford were eventually caught using the same sort of emissions testing defeat devices on diesel vehicles. But the global penetration of Volkswagen's TDI brand, and the fact that they were caught first, made the German automaker the face of the scandal, triggering civil and criminal suits across Europe and the U.S.In this new case, Volkswagen is being taken to task by French prosecutors for marketing TDI models as more efficient and environmentally friendly than they were in reality. The automaker is facing a fine of anywhere from €750,000 up to 10 percent of its annual gross revenue, in addition to the potential for bans on certain commercial marketing activities. 'The legal proceedings before the French courts also serve the objective of preserving the rights of the victims, who are particularly numerous. Unlike what it has already done in several other European countries and abroad, Volkswagen has remained deaf to the legitimate demands of French vehicle owners to compensate them for the material and moral damages suffered, resulting from the purchase of these polluting vehicles,' lawyers Marc Barennes and Romain Boulet said to Agence France-Presse. The Volkswagen Group and its legal counsel has yet to comment on the case. However, the automaker's lawyers reportedly contested the validity of aggravated deception during Dieselgate proceedings in France back in 2023, stating that 'French consumers have not suffered any compensable harm in connection with the purchase of a VW vehicle.' Volkswagen has paid handsomely in fines and damages from other lawsuits, coughing up over $32 billion in total and $9.8 billion in damages to U.S. consumers.
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