Such a move would be a ray of sunshine for Volkswagen, which is facing a financial storm of declining sales, sky-high recall costs, looming fines and lawsuits. Still, according to Sax, the company would have to fork over money to California to offset the environmental harm caused by having its somewhat less dirty diesels plying the state's roadways. Factoring into CARB's decision to consider a partial-fix solution was a concern raised at the hearing by a state senator, who worried Volkswagen could sell bought-back vehicles in a foreign market with less stringent regulations. Earlier this week, Volkswagen admitted to U.S. regulators that they couldn't meet a March 24 deadline to submit a plan for fixing its 2.0-liter diesel models. [Image: JT/Flickr ]