A federal judge in San Francisco granted initial approval Tuesday to a deal worth at least $1.2 billion that aims to compensate the owners of roughly 78,000 Volkswagens with 3-liter engines that were rigged to cheat on emissions tests.
The company previously agreed to spend up to $10 billion compensating owners of roughly 475,000 Volkswagens and Audi vehicles with 2-liter diesel engines -- the bulk of the vehicles caught up in Volkswagen's emissions cheating scandal.
U.S. District Judge Charles Breyer congratulated attorneys for Volkswagen and car owners before granting preliminary approval to the smaller deal involving Volkswagens, Audis and Porsches. He said the settlement was complicated and motivated by economic and environmental concerns.
The deal offers thousands of dollars in compensation to individual car owners on top of buybacks or repairs.
"This settlement marks an important milestone in Volkswagen's efforts to make things right in the United States," said Robert Giuffra, an attorney representing the company.