Diess' reign at Volkswagen: efficient, capricious and never boring

The timing of Herbert Diess' departure as head of Volkswagen AG came as a surprise, but his tenure was marked by turmoil.

Disagreements and discontent among VW's influential family, labor and government stakeholders over his tough management style have been frequent irritants during the 63-year-old Diess' four-year rule.

After putting Europe's largest automaker on the electric road, he bows to Porsche's 54-year-old chief executive Oliver Blum, who is taking over a company with a serf culture that's hard to change.

Here are some key moments that preceded The announcement of Diss' resignation late Friday.