Volkswagen pleads guilty, agrees to $4.3 billion fine
U.S. regulators confronted VW about the software after West Virginia University researchers discovered differences in testing and real-world emissions of harmful nitrogen oxide.
Even after that admission, company employees were busy deleting computer files and other evidence, VW's general counsel Manfred Doess acknowledged to U.S. District Judge Sean Cox.
An attorney for 300 VW owners who have opted out of a larger court settlement objected to the penalty, contending that owners were entitled to restitution through the criminal court.