Volkswagen to recall over 640,000 vehicles in China

Volkswagen will recall over 640,000 vehicles from China, its biggest market, to rectify a possible gearbox fault, two days after the German car giant was forced to withdraw over 207,000 SUVs over defect in the lights.

The company will recall 621,563 locally-made models as well as 18,746 imported cars including Audis and Beetles to replace oil in their transmissions that might cause an electrical problem, China's quality watchdog said.

It will replace the fluid with mineral oil at no cost to owners in China, the world's largest auto market.

A day earlier, the Chinese government announced Volkswagen would recall more than 207,000 sport utility vehicles over a possible defect in the lights.

Confirming the move, Volkswagen said it was part of a global recall.

"We sincerely apologise to our customers for any inconvenience caused," the Volkswagen statement said.

The synthetic oil used in the defective vehicles has affected the proper working of the gearbox, which may lead to power supply malfunction and cause safety problems, the Volkswagen statement was quoted as saying by the state-run Xinhua news agency.

In March, the German car manufacturer recalled 384,000 vehicles in China, also to fix gearbox defects.

China is Volkswagen's biggest market and strong sales have buoyed it's finances against weaker performance elsewhere.