Volkswagen’s Chief Executive Officer, Martin Winterkorn resigned Tuesday, following the startling admission last week by the world’s largest car maker that the company falsified emissions tests. In a statement issued by the company, Winterkorn said, ‘I am shocked by the events of the past few days. Above all, I am stunned that misconduct on such a scale was possible in the Volkswagen Group. As CEO I accept responsibility for the irregularities that have been found in diesel engines and have therefore requested the Supervisory Board to agree on terminating my function as CEO of the Volkswagen Group. I am doing this in the interests of the company even though I am not aware of any wrong doing on my part.’ The scandal broke on Friday when U.S. regulators said the Germany-based automobile manufacturer cheated on American air pollution tests on 500,000 cars, but 11 million cars have the software. The company admitted they intentionally installed software to falsify smog tests, emitting as much as 40 times the legal pollution limit. After the news broke the company’s stock price declined nearly 18 percent for a total market share of roughly $29 billion. Among the possible candidates for the CEO job are Matthias Muller, Porsche AG chief executive and Rupert Stadler, Audi chairman and chief executive. This will be decided at Friday’s supervisory board meeting. TheStreet’s Valerie Young reports from New York.
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