EL PASO COUNTY – The massive caravan of unused and recalled Volkswagen vehicles has finally rolled away from the Pikes Peak International Raceway. So what’s next?
The vehicles that were stored there, all recalled due to the “EPA’s historic civil settlement with Volkswagen,” were only part of a much larger picture.
PPIR was only one site located around the US where the recalled vehicles are being stored.
After reaching out to Volkswagen on May 1, the company’s communication department informed News5 of the following:
“Approximately 475,000 eligible customer had the choice of buyback, lease termination or approved emissions modification. More than 99.9% of customers in the United States who were eligible for Volkswagen’s class settlements have fully resolved their claims.”
According to uscourts.gov and the most recent court documents, of those vehicles, the majority of owners or lessees chose a buyback or early lease termination agreement.
But what is Volkswagen doing with all these vehicles? PPIR was full to bursting in 2017, hosting thousands of recalled vehicles, and now it sits completely empty.
According to the EPA, fixes for the affected diesel vehicles received approval in 2017.
News5 reached out to VW’s executive vice president of communications for the American region who was unable to reveal any additional details.
“Thank you for reaching out. Unfortunately, we cannot add
more to the topic.” -Pietro Zollino
However, we did find some insight in speaking with Tim Jackson, CEO and President of the Colorado Automobile Dealers Association.
Jackson said he believes the majority of the vehicles removed from the Pikes Peak International Raceway will receive emissions fixes along with any repairs needed from sitting at PPIR for so long and will be put up for auction.
As to where the vehicles will ultimately end up, Jackson says that many will probably go to southern states, some may go south of the border while some may stay here.
Another statement from VW indicates that those that aren’t being updated or modified for resale are being, “Responsibly recycled.”
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