Volkswagen says 3 million European cars need hardware changes

[RANKFURT] Volkswagen said on Wednesday about 3 million cars in Europe have 1.6 litre engines, which will require hardware changes in the wake of the company's diesel emissions rigging scandal.

VW admitted on Sept 18 it used illegal software to manipulate emissions tests on diesel vehicles in the United States, sparking the biggest business crisis in its history.

The German carmaker has said that for its larger and smaller engines a software fix would be sufficient but for its 1.6 litre engines, the technology also needs to be adapted.

Volkswagen has said it aims to complete a refit of all affected vehicles by the end of 2016.

Matthias Mueller, who took the helm last month, said on Wednesday Volkswagen may have to set aside more than the 6.5 billion euros (US$7.37 billion) it has so far allocated to cover the costs of the emissions scandal if car sales suffer.

REUTERS