Volkswagen says CO2 emissions scandal affects only 36,000 vehicles

In addition, the beleaguered car maker said it no longer expects a €2bn (£1.4bn) hit to earnings as a result.

"Just a month after questions relating to the CO2 figures measured on some of the group's models arose, Volkswagen has largely concluded the clarification of the matter," the company said.

"Following extensive internal investigations and measurement checks, it is now clear that almost all of these model variants do correspond to the CO2 figures originally determined.

"This means that these vehicles can be marketed and sold without any limitations. The suspicion that the fuel consumption figures of current production vehicles had been unlawfully changed was not confirmed."

Last month, Volkswagen said it had provided potentially false information on fuel use and CO2 emissions on around 800,000 vehicles.

"Customers' real-world consumption figures do not change and neither are any technical vehicle modifications necessary,” said VW.

It said that against this background, the negative impact on earnings of €2bn that was originally expected has not been confirmed.

“Whether we will have a minor economic impact depends on the results of the re-measurement exercise.”

At 1210 GMT, VW shares were up 5.5% to €130.85.