The Volkswagen emissions scandal is thought to result in thousands of people across Europe dying early due to air pollution from the cars that cheated emissions tests , according to researchers at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology . The German manufacturer fitted “defeat devices” to more than 11 million diesel VW, Audi, Skoda and Seat cars built between 2007 and 2015, including 1.2 million sold in the UK. The carmaker fitted illegal emissions to over 11 million diesel cars that were built between 2007 and 2015 , which produced three times the legal limit of pollutants . The extra nitrogen toxins ( from the 2.6 million cars sold in Germany ) emitted into the air are expected to result in 1,200 people dying early , state researchers .
The Volkswagen emissions scandal is thought to result in thousands of people across Europe dying early due to air pollution from the cars that cheated emissions tests , according to researchers at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology . The carmaker fitted illegal emissions to over 11 million diesel cars that were built between 2007 and 2015 , which produced three times the legal limit of pollutants . The extra nitrogen toxins ( from the 2.6 million cars sold in Germany ) emitted into the air are expected to result in 1,200 people dying early , state researchers .