VW Can’t Escape the Diesel Scandal Fallout

A popular 1960s ad for the VW Beetle claimed that the diminutive car “runs, and runs, and runs, and runs… .” The same could be said of the diesel emissions scandal that’s plagued the automaker for the past three years. In the coming months, Volkswagen AG will have to deal with at least a half-dozen court actions stemming from its use of software to cheat on diesel emission tests.

After putting aside some $32 billion to settle lawsuits and pay damages, the automaker faces more than $10 billion in further claims from disgruntled investors and customers—as well as untold damage to its reputation as top executives risk being hauled before the court. “The investigations are grinding away at VW like sand in a machine,” says Uwe Wolff, a crisis communications consultant in Berlin. “It’s a huge burden for the company, and it’s absorbing too much of its energy.”