Volkswagen close to US settlement over "Dieselgate"

Audi have said that a settlement deal with US authorities for Volkswagen's part in the emissions scandal is close, and could be concluded by October of this year.

Volkswagen were found to have tampered with their level of diesel emissions in around 11m cars after a 2015 investigation by the Environmental Protection Agency in the United States.

Head of sales and marketing at Audi, Dietmar Voggenreiter, told Reuters that the negotiations had been going well so far.

"(We’re) in really good discussions with U.S. authorities," said Voggenreiter. "Hopefully in October, latest the beginning of November, we will have the final agreement with the U.S."

The "Dieselgate" scandal continues to drag on for Volkswagen and its parent company Audi, witht he former recording a 12% drop in profit in the second quarter, and the latter missing profitability targets.

The group admitted to having cheated emissions tests on their exhausts following the scandal. In June it agreed a deal to provide $15.3bn to compensate 2.0 litre car owners, but it still has to conclude talks surrounding its 3.0 litre cars.

“We are just in discussions so I cannot judge how the authorities will judge our technical solutions; but I feel we have good technical solutions,” Voggenreiter said.