Volkswagen executives were left yelling "Farfegnugen!" after the California Air Resources Board (CARB) rejected the German automaker's plan to repair its 2.0 liter diesel engines. According to Reuters, the motors were enabled to emit 40 times the amount of pollution allowed by U.S. law. CARB says the plan didn't go far enough or make changes quick enough.
California officials say that it will continue to talk with Volkswagen and find a more suitable solution for the problem. VW confirmed it is still in talks with California officials and that the rejection had to do with plans for a recall it had submitted in December. While no immediate penalties were announced, MotorTrend says the state did issue Volkswagen "a new notice to inform it of its violations of California air quality regulations."
The Environmental Protection Agency also said that the automaker has yet to provide them with a strategic plan to address reducing pollution, as well as bringing their vehicles into compliance. Volkswagen Group CEO Matthias Mueller recently met with EPA Chief Gina McCarthy to discuss the impact of this now infamous scandal. All told, this issue has affected more than 600,000 vehicles in the U.S. and a staggering 11 million cars worldwide.
In addition to the 2.0 liter I-4 engine, the manufacturer's 4.0 liter V-6 was also affected. According to Reuters and MotorTrend, the deadline to submit a plan to recall for the larger engine is February 2.