Volkswagen Ireland on Wednesday apologized to Irish car owners in the wake of the scandal over emissions testing software in diesel engines.

Volkswagen Ireland's managing director Lars Himmer said his company would fix the mistakes and recognized it needed to learn lessons from the mistakes made.

"We take full responsibility for our actions and will cooperate with the committee on what happened," Himmer said.

He made the apology while appearing before the Irish parliament's joint committee on transport and communications to explain why Volkswagen reportedly continued to sell diesel cars installed with emissions software designed to cheat on pollution tests and its potential impact on Irish car owners.

According to Himmer, up to 80,000 vehicles sold by the company in Ireland and a further 30,000 vehicle imported into the country may be affected by the manipulation of coding software.

The emissions issue relates to vehicles registered between 2008 and 2015 and containing a type EA189 engine.

Himmer said Volkswagen Ireland had suspended the sale of new cars and vans with the affected engine.

He said that like most people, he first learned about emissions irregularities in September.

He added his company had set up a national website for customers to check if their vehicle was affected, adding that all owners had been contacted in writing also.

Himmer said the affected cars are technically safe and roadworthy and that there was no impact on handling or consumption.

He also said the solution should have no impact on CO2 emissions in the future. Endit

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