As Volkswagen Group is working on controlling the extensive damage to its brand caused by the emission scandal (Volkswagen Dieselgate), things took a turn for worse as the US EPA (Environmental Protection Agency) found more Audi, Porsche and VW models with the defeat device. These models are powered by the 3.0-litre TDI diesel engine which is claimed to be governed by the cheating software that was found in the EA189 series TDI diesel engines.
EPA stated:
EPA says that over 10,000 VW Group cars in the US that are sold with the 3.0-litre TDI diesel engines since 2014 carry the defeat device.When the vehicle senses that it is undergoing a federal emissions test procedure, it operates in a low NOx ‘temperature conditioning’ mode. Under that mode, the vehicle meets emission standards. At exactly one second after the completion of the initial phases of the standard test procedure, the vehicle immediately changes a number of operating parameters that increase NOx emissions and indicates in the software that it is transitioning to ‘normal mode’ where emissions of NOx increase up to nine times the EPA standard.
The affected models in the US include 2014 Volkswagen Touareg, 2015 Porsche Cayenne and 2016 Audi A6, A7, A8 / A8 L and Q5. The agency says that roughly 10,000 models sold since 2014 were affected in the US in addition to the undisclosed amount of 2016 models.
Also read – VW India announces statement regarding emissions issue
This clearly has huge implications on Volkswagen Group’s operations not only in North America but elsewhere in the world. We won’t be surprised if a second wave of inspection is triggered throughout the world, this time with the 3.0-litre TDI engine as the prime focus. We could be looking at an upward revision of total number of vehicles that are affected by the Volkswagen Dieselgate.
