Volkswagen could start to recall cars containing emissions test-rigging devices in January, the company's new chief executive has said.
Matthias Mueller told German newspaper Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung he hoped all affected cars would be repaired by the end of next year.
The German car-maker has confirmed that nearly 1.2 million diesel vehicles in the UK are among 11 million cars worldwide affected by the scandal.
He told the paper: "(If) everything goes as planned, we can begin in January with the repair." He said the repairs would be "free for the customer".
VW must submit its timetable to correct the defeat device software, which conned testers into believing their vehicles met environmental standards, to German authorities this week.
On Tuesday Mr Mueller said some of the cars could be fixed by adjusting the software, while others would need mechanical alterations.
He also told a meeting of more than 20,000 employees the company would recover from the crisis but it "would not happen without pain".
The firm will have to review planned investments and contain costs as it faces large fines and lost sales, he added.
The scandal was sparked by US environmental regulators who found VW had installed software that disabled pollution controls when the vehicle was not being tested.
Meanwhile, consumer group Which? asked 19 manufacturers whether they had been misleading the public by manipulating tests, with all but two replying to deny cheating.