It said the offending vehicles with the V6 diesels included the 2014 VW Touareg, 2015 Porsche Cayenne and 2016 Audi A6 quattro, A7 quattro, A8, A8L and Q5 crossover.
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The EPA asserts that the Volksawgen Group not only installed the cheating software in its VW cars, but also installed it in 3.0-liter V-6 TDI diesel engines used by Audi, Porsche and VW too, Green auto Reports noted. EPA Assistant Administrator Cynthia Giles says this is possible because the engines have two modes: one for tests and another for normal driving.
The new charges, which the Environmental Protection Agency and the California Air Resources Board detailed in a six-page notice of violation to the company (PDF), drags VW’s ritzy Porsche line into the scandal for the first time.
Approximately 10,000 diesel cars already sold in the U.S. are believed to be affected by this latest notice of violation.
In its letter to the automaker, the EPA alleged that deliberate software was installed on the car’s engine control computer, created to cheat emissions. When the vehicle was undergoing emissions testing, the engine would shift to a cleaner mode that controlled emissions of nitrogen oxide, or NOx, a pollutant that contributes to urban smog. In that mode, a vehicle meets emission standards.
EPA officials were reluctant to answer any specifics on Monday, citing that they are still in talks with Volkswagen and therefore can not comment on any details at this time.
“All companies should be playing by the same rules”, she said.
With Volkswagen facing fines of $37,500 (€34,000) for every vehicle, the widened investigation could result in a further $375m (€340m) being added onto penalties already expected to comfortably enter the billions.
“This design feature is an illegal defeat device”, she said. “Volkswagen will cooperate fully with the EPA clarify this matter in its entirety”.
Authorities discovered the additional altered models after the EPA started testing all 2015 and 2016 light-duty diesel models available in the U.S using updated testing procedures specifically created to detect potential defeat devices.
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The new information came out of ongoing joint investigations into actual emissions performance by a range of cars, including those from other makers besides Volkswagen, by the EPA, the California Air Resources Board and Environment Canada.
