Volkswagen CEO Martin Winterkorn announced his resignation from the company on Sept. 23, 2015. Winterkorn faced almost certain empeachment due to a recent scandal regarding the dishonest computerized emissions tests on Volkswagen vehicles. Matthias Muller, CEO of Volkswagen subsidiary Porsche, took over Winterkorn’s position on Sept. 25, 2015. Muller is now burdened with the difficult task of rehabilitating Volkswagen’s tainted public image. While the company is known for its clean and eco-friendly reputation, the emissions scandal tore a gaping hole in the company’s façade. Volkswagen cars were programmed to cheat when checked at a test center, changing to economy mode and injecting chemicals to cut emissions in order to record results below those present in normal driving conditions. According to The Guardian, the emissions scandal was estimated to have caused an additional one million tons of air polution on a yearly basis.
The effects of the scandal have wide-reaching implications which even extend to local car-owners. Speaking to The Star, Torontonian and Volkswagen owner Jessica Lancaster expressed a feeling of betrayal towards the company who had fronted an environmentally conscious image. “I originally purchased [the 2009 Volkswagen Jetta TDI] because it was an environmentally friendly car,” said Lancaster in a Sept. 23, 2015 Toronto Star article. “Now I don’t feel comfortable even driving it.” In looking to move forward at Volkswagen, new CEO Matthias Muller might take a page out of the book of General Motors CEO Mary Barra, who faced a similar situation during General Motors’ defective ignition switch scandal. After a generation of GMC cars were produced with defective ignition switches, 30 million vehicles were recalled, while 124 deaths and 275 injuries were reported—making a strong negative impact on the already-ailing company.
As newly-appointed CEO, Mary Barra fired the 15 employees at the heart of the error, and faced the issue with unfliching honesty, both in her public appearances and in her role as manager. This past July, General Motors’ fortunes vastly improved, with second-quarter earnings that were more than five times what they had been the year before.