TOKYO — Volkswagen’s new chief executive Herbert Diess apologized today at the Tokyo auto show for the automaker’s emissions-cheating scandal, promising to win back customer trust, and said it will delay the launch of a diesel vehicle in Japan.

The head of VW’s Japan division, Sven Stein, who appeared at the VW booth before Diess, bowed for several seconds in a Japanese style of apology. Diess made no bow.

“On behalf of my entire company, I’d like to apologize,” said Diess, a recent hire from BMW, stressing that the priority is to fix the problem, uncover what happened and make sure the scandal never happens again.

Volkswagen is engulfed in a crisis after U.S. authorities found its diesel vehicles had software installed that allowed the cars to cheat emissions tests. On the road, the vehicles were in fact emitting pollutants at levels many times higher than advertised. The automaker faces recalls for millions of vehicles and punishing fines.

“We are doing everything we can to bring back this trust in our brand,” said Diess.

He promised to “create a new and even better Volkswagen,” rallying behind the principles of “innovation, responsibility and lasting value.” Then Stein and Diess unveiled a plug-in hybrid sport utility vehicle, pulling back a cloth covering a car on the stage.

Stein acknowledged after the presentation that sales in Japan had plummeted, more than by a third, although other factors besides the scandal, such as the lack of new models, compared to last year, may also be behind the plunge.