The Justice Department challenged the German automaker Volkswagen in federal court Monday, saying that the company installed illegal devices in nearly 600,000 diesel engine systems to impair emissions controls, thereby increasing harmful air pollution.
The civil complaint, filed in Detroit, comes after Volkswagen admitted in September that it had installed software designed to cheat on emissions tests in 11 million of its diesel vehicles worldwide, setting off one of the largest corporate scandals in the auto industry's history.
Since then, the company’s chief executive officer, Martin Winterkorn, has resigned, nine employees have been suspended, and the company has begun the twin tasks of designing fixes for the vehicles and containing consumer outrage and litigation.