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Germany Wants to Fine VW Based on Illicit "Clean Diesel" Profits

From Road & Track

Last week, we reported that Volkswagen wouldn't be fined by the German government the way the U.S. government is penalizing the automaker-with a dollar amount pinned to each emissions-cheating diesel sold in that country. But now the German government is seeking other ways to penalize Volkswagen's cheating ways.

Automotive News Europe reports that Germany is pushing for fines based on the profits VW made by selling cheating diesel vehicles in Europe. With approximately 11 million TDI-powered vehicles equipped to skirt environmental regulations sold in Europe, prosecutors say the automaker enjoyed an unfair advantage over its competition for several years.

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Details on the size of the fine are still scarce, but it's expected to be at least several million dollars. As Automotive News Europe points out, similar cases led to electronics manufacturer Siemens being fined approximately $664 million and truck manufacturer MAN being fined approximately $166 million.

While those numbers are still significantly, they're both well short of the $14.7 billion in fines VW faces in the U.S.