The emissions cheating scandal, which on Tuesday saw three Volkswagen chiefs charged and its rival Daimler heavily fined, has had major repercussions for the car industry since it broke four years ago.

Here are key points about "dieselgate".

– Exposed in 2015 –

On September 18, 2015, the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) reported that VW had installed illegal "defeat devices" in hundreds of thousands of engines in the United States since 2009.

The software — used in the Volkswagen, Porsche, Audi, Seat and Skoda brands — helped the cars meet exhaust pollution standards when monitored in tests even though their emissions actually exceeded the limits.

It meant that some cars spewed out up to 40 times more harmful nitrogen oxide — linked to respiratory and cardiovascular diseases — than legally allowed.

The company later admitted that 11 million diesel vehicles worldwide, including 8.5 million in Europe and 600,000 in the United States, had been fitted with the software, most of them in the VW brand.

– Legal fall-out –

In Germany several probes have been opened into officials at offending carmakers.

Audi chief executive Rupert Stadler was charged in July 2019 with fraud, falsifying certifications and illegal advertising in connection with the scandal.

VW chief executive Martin Winterkorn, who stepped down five days after the scandal broke, was in April 2019 charged with serious fraud, unfair competition and breach of trust.

German prosecutors said Tuesday they had charged VW's chief executive Herbert Diess, Winterkorn and supervisory board chief Hans Dieter Poetsch with "market manipulation".

VW in March 2017 settled its legal entanglements in the United States, paying around $22 billion in fines and compensation to owners and dealers and for environmental clean-up.

Eight former and current executives and an Audi official have been charged in the United States, including Winterkorn.

The group still faces investigations and lawsuits in France, Italy, Britain and Poland.

– Costs for VW –

It has cost VW more than 30 billion euros ($33 billion) in fines, legal costs and compensation payments to car owners — the vast majority in the United States.

VW said in July 2019 it expects "slightly higher" unit sales for the year than in 2018.

Faced with tougher emissions limits from 2020 and to restore Volkswagen's image Diess, who took over in April 2018, has launched an ambitious move to all-electric cars.

– Other carmakers –

Tests have found that diesel engines by other carmakers were also more polluting on the road than during testing.

On Tuesday German car giant Daimler was ordered to pay an 870 million euro fine for "negligent violation of supervisory duties".

Four Daimler officials were already accused of fraud and misleading advertising.

In February, German prosecutors fined high-end carmaker BMW 8.5 million euros over diesel cars with higher harmful emissions than allowed, though they found no criminal wrong-doing.

Fiat Chrysler agreed in January 2019 to a pay $515 million to settle claims it installed the software.

PSA's German subsidiary Opel is also being investigated.

– Consequences for customers –

A study released in 2017 said that pollution from 2.6 million rigged VW cars sold in Germany would likely cause 1,200 premature deaths in Europe because of the excess emissions.

The fall-out for customers has been different on both sides of the Atlantic. In the United States, where anti-pollution standards are tougher, VW has accepted to repair or buyback nearly 600,000 cars, and compensate their owners.

In Europe, where most of the cars have been sold, VW has not compensated its customers but the vehicles have in general been recalled.

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