Volkswagen has taken parking lots to an entire new level in the United States – and is not going to be emptying them soon.
Volkswagen has paid over $7.4 billion to purchase about 350,000 U.S. diesel vehicles during mid-February, a new court filing shows. The automaker has been collecting hundreds of thousands of vehicles in the United States for months.
Volkswagen has 37 secure storage centers across the United States housing almost 300,000 vehicles, the filing from the program’s independent administrator stated. The lots consist of a shuttered suburban Detroit football stadium, a former Minnesota paper mill and a sun-bleached desert graveyard close to Victorville, California.
Volkswagen spokeswoman Jeannine Ginivan stated Wednesday that the storage facility located in Victorville, California, is one of many “to ensure the responsible storage of vehicles that are bought back under the terms of the Volkswagen” diesel settlements.
“These vehicles are being stored on an interim basis and routinely maintained in a way to ensure their long-term operability and quality, so that they may be returned to commerce or exported once U.S. regulators approve appropriate emissions modifications,” she stated.
Overall, the automaker has agreed to spend over $25 billion in the United States for dealing with the claims from owners, environmental regulators, states and dealers and offered to buy back around 500,000 polluting U.S. vehicles. The buy backs will continue until the end of 2019.
The court fling stated through December 31 Volkswagen had reacquired 335,000 diesel vehicles, resold 13,000 and destroyed about 28,000 vehicles. As of the end of 2017, the automaker was storing 294,000 vehicles around the nation.
