Volkswagen , Stellantis , 13 other carmakers and their car association were fined a total of 458 million euros ($495 million) by EU antitrust regulators on Tuesday for taking part in a vehicle recycling cartel.

On Monday, the European Commission — the executive body of the European Union — announced it has fined 15 car manufacturers for colluding and participating in what it described as "a long-lasting cartel" to prevent competition on vehicle recycling and the use of recycled materials in their cars.

The commission said that 16 major car manufacturers and the ACEA entered into what it called anticompetitive agreements for almost 15 years.