Audi recalls 850,000 diesel cars worldwide

The German auto manufacturer Audi AG announced Friday that it will recall up to 850,000 cars with six-cylinder and eight-cylinder diesel engines worldwide except the United States and Canada, to improve emissions of those cars.

As a subsidiary company of Volkswagen Group, the Ingolstadt-based Audi has been involved in diesel emissions scandal and therefore decided to offer its customers "a retrofit program" for cars with EU5 and EU6 diesel engines, mainly including getting software for these affected cars updated for free.

With the recall action in close consultation with Germany's Federal Motor Transport Authority, the company intends to reduce overall emissions, especially in urban areas, according to its statement, as well as to maintain the future viability of diesel engines.

Moreover, Audi confirmed that the free service also applies to the Porsche and Volkswagen models that are fitted with the same types of engines.

For similar reason, another German carmaker Daimler AG declared Tuesday to recall over three million diesel cars with Mecedes-Benz brand across Europe, which will take that automobile giant 220 million euros for the so-called "comprehensive plan for diesel engines."

Both Audi and Daimler are allegedly using illegal software in diesel vehicles to cheat in emissions tests.