Volkswagen has to come up with a plan to fix 600,000 cars that emit illegal levels of pollution by April 21, a US court has ruled.

The US District Court Judge said: “This issue of what is to be done with these cars must be done by that date.”

If a plan is not in place by April 21, the court will consider what action to take.

The auto maker said it was committed to resolving the US investigation “as quickly as possible”.

In September 2015, US authorities revealed that VW had used computer software to massage emissions data during tests, sparking the biggest crisis in the company’s history and leading to the departure of its CEO.

The DoJ is suing VW for breaching environmental laws.

In emerged that more than 11 million VW cars worldwide have been fitted with the devices.

VW has set aside €6.7 billion to cover the costs of the scandal, although earlier this month the company warned this might not be enough.

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