On Friday, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the California Air Resources Board said they are now probing Volkswagen, Audi and Porsche models with 3.0-liter diesel engines as far back as the 2009 model year, after initially focusing on newer versions.
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Audi admits that it failed to disclose three of its Auxiliary Emissions Control Devices or AECD, which is suspicious considering one of those is actually a cheat device. Which sounds like they’re splitting hairs.
Europe’s largest auto maker is embroiled in a global emissions scandal that involves diesel and gasoline engines and could potentially cost tens of billions of euros in fines and litigation, in addition to installing new software and hardware.
While the European fix won’t apply in the U.S., it does show a path forward for most of the cars that had cheating software worldwide. Which does seem barking.
VW says it would “fully cooperate with EPA and CARB as we work to develop an approved remedy as quickly as possible” for the 2.0-litre diesel engine.
VW officials themselves acknowledged on Thursday the number of affected vehicles is greater to EPA.
“It will take several months before there are conclusive findings”, he said, according to a partial text of his remarks.
Amid fears the emissions scandal could hit sales of diesel vehicles, Mueller said VW would increase spending on alternative technologies such as electric and hybrid vehicles by 100 million euros next year compared with previous targets.
We have to wonder how many other cars have been cheating these tests, especially as these cars emissions were said to have fallen over the past few years, yet Co2 levels are still climbing in the rush hour in certain cities, such as London?
Müller said the repairs on most vehicles would not be substantial.
In Europe, however, VW will only “ensure that owners of cars are inconvenienced as little as possible when their vehicles are recalled for fixes to make them compliant with type approval regulations”, Automotive News reports.
Since emissions play a part in how much an automaker pays in taxes, Volkswagen could potentially face significant consequences.
Ratings agencies have also slashed its credit rating, with Moody’s saying on Nov 4 that the company’s reputation and earnings were at risk from the growing scandal.
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In the course of VW’s internal investigation, led by the law firm Jones Day and including auditors from the consulting firm Deloitte, computers, smartphones, and documents have been seized, Mueller said.
