As part of the settlement after it got caught cheating on its emissions tests, Volkswagen has bought back about 350,000 of its U.S. diesel vehicles. The automaker so far has spent more than $7.4 billion on the cars, according to court filings seen by Reuters.
Where does VW put all those cars? Wherever it can find the space.
The German automaker has 37 remote storage facilities across the U.S., and they’re not just parking lots. The sites include a former football stadium in the Detroit suburbs, an old paper mill in Minnesota and a giant patch of land in the California desert.
People who own or lease one of the affected vehicles can choose to sell their cars back to VW, terminate their lease or have their car modified for improved emissions. Owners and lessees have until Sept. 1 to submit a claim.
A court filing seen by Reuters said that through Dec. 31, “Volkswagen had reacquired 335,000 diesel vehicles, resold 13,000 and destroyed about 28,000 vehicles. As of the end of last year, VW was storing 294,000 vehicles around the country.”