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Audi Volkswagen Korea, which resumed sales in South Korean this year after a two-year suspension over tampering with emissions levels, apologized formally to consumers in an Apr. 6 meeting with reporters at a hotel in Seoul’s Yongsan district.

But with the automaker failing to state what it was actually apologizing for, it is now facing accusations of leaving the substance out of its apology. Since the “Dieselgate” scandal first erupted in Sept. 2015, Volkswagen has yet to admit to illegal tampering with emissions gas reduction equipment in its vehicles in South Korea.

In its Apr. 6 remarks, the company referred only to the “diesel issue” without acknowledging tampering or mentioning responsibility.

“[The] diesel issue is very painful for Audi Volkswagen Korea and the entire Volkswagen group. We deeply regret it,” said Audi Volkswagen Korea co-Group Managing Director Marcus Hellmann.

“The topic is still ongoing,” he continued, adding that there were areas requiring resolution going ahead.

In the US, Volkswagen paid US$30 billion in vehicle repurchasing and repairs costs and civil and criminal fines after admitting to tampering with “defeat devices” for its emissions gas reduction programs. In South Korea, it paid vouchers worth one million won (US$935) for vehicles without acknowledging tampering or assuming any responsibility for compensation.

Volkswagen CEO Matthias Müller also appeared in an apology video from the head offices in Germany pledging the company’s reestablishment as an “honest brand,” but observers said the message was lacking in sincerity.

“Trust me when I say we have worked nonstop with Audi Volkswagen Korea over the past two years to rectify the issue and restore trust in the brand,” Müller said in his message.

But attorney Ha Jong-seon of the law firm Barun, which is representing customers in the Dieselgate case, asked, “Does it make sense to talk about ‘apologizing’ and ‘restoring trust’ when [Volkswagen] neither acknowledges illegal tampering or assumes responsibility for compensation in South Korea?”

By Hong Dae-sun, staff reporter

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