The “dieselgate” scandal involving German carmaker Volkswagen has some implications for Korea, especially government policy on environment protection and the auto industry.

First of all, the dishonest practice perpetrated by the world’s leading automaker confirms that we never should trust those whose goal is to make money. In recent times, we have witnessed similar cases involving unethical enterprises like Enron and Lehman Brothers.

The Volkswagen case is all the more disappointing because it involves a previously respected auto manufacturer of a country with a high reputation for industrial standards and business integrity.

As seen by the recent surge in the sales of German-made cars, Koreans tend to have a positive attitude toward products from Germany. Many Koreans identify German goods with high quality, endurance and reliability. This faith in the “Made in Germany” mark will certainly be dented.

The debacle surrounding Volkswagen’s cheating on emissions data also provides a precious lesson regarding motorists’ excessive fondness for diesel-driven vehicles.

Diesel engine cars have better fuel efficiency than gasoline cars, and automakers have claimed that steady technological advancement has resolved much of the concerns about their emissions problems.

In fact, European carmakers like Volkswagen spearheaded the boom for diesel cars in Korea, with local firms like Hyundai moving fast to catch up with the expansion of the diesel car market.

Consequently, diesel-engine vehicles accounted for a record-high 51.9 percent of newly registered cars in South Korea in the first half of this year, up 18 percent from a year earlier.

The popularity of diesel vehicles is more apparent among imported brands. Of total foreign car sales during the first half, 70.8 percent were diesel cars.
As the emissions data-rigging scandal spreads from the U.S. to Europe and other major car markets, the Korean government has rightfully ordered Volkswagen to provide data on how many of the cars it sold here were installed with emissions-rigging software.

It is also quite natural that officials have decided to check the emission levels of four models made by Volkswagen and its affiliate Audi -- Jetta, Golf, Beetle and A3 -- and then expand the investigation into more diesel vehicles made by other companies.

Given that there are more than 100 models of diesel vehicle running on Korean roads, the government should conduct a systematic and thorough examination of their emission levels. The reports that the level of pollutants emitted from Volkswagen diesel vehicles reached 40 times the permissible level alone point to the need for rigorous examination and follow-up action.

In all regards, the Volkswagen debacle should reawaken government regulators and industry officials to the importance of upholding a high, strict standard in vehicle emissions and fuel efficiency.

It was not long ago that Hyundai had to recall and spend a lot of money in compensation for overstating the fuel efficiency of the Santa Fe sport utility vehicle. We cannot rule out the possibility of a similar situation recurring unless government and industry officials learn from the crisis engulfing Volkswagen.