German auto giant Volkswagen said Thursday it will recall a total of 8.5 million diesel vehicles Europe-wide that are equipped with sophisticated software enabling their engines to cheat pollution tests. 

Responding to an order from the German KBA federal transport authority earlier to recall 2.4 million vehicles in Germany alone, VW announced in a statement that around 8.5 million vehicles would be recalled in all 28 of the European Union's member states, starting from January 2016.