Volkswagen Group of America CEO Michael Horn testified in a congressional hearing today. He said that hardware changes and software changes will be needed for the cars that use the first generation of VW’s EA189 2.0-liter turbodiesel, starting with the 2009 VW Jetta TDI. “We know we can fix these vehicles” to satisfy emissions standards, Horn said.

In his testimony, Horn apologized for the violations and strongly denied he was aware of the software that regulators now say helped 482,000 VW diesel vehicles skirt U.S. emissions rules.

He said the use of the defeat software in diesel cars was not a corporate decision, but something that “individuals did.” In his opening statement, Horn said he was told in early 2014 of a “possible emissions non-compliance that could be remedied”. However, Horn said, he had no knowledge at the time that the vehicles contained the so-called defeat devices.

In July 2014, Horn said, VW engineers confirmed that the results of the WVU study were correct and said a software change was being prepared to address the issue. “I was not then told nor did I have any reason to suspect or to believe that our vehicles had such a device,” Horn told members of the Oversight and Investigations subcommittee of the House Energy and Commerce Committee.

In questioning, Horn said he first learned of the defeat devices a couple of days before VW’s Sept. 3 meeting with the EPA and the California Air Resources Board during which the devices were disclosed to regulators.

The VW scandal is far from over. Stay tuned to this blog spot for more info as it comes out and as always, DRIVE SAFE!