Volkswagen could be fined $38,000 per car for manipulating emissions tests
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I think the part some are missing is that the car has a "normal" setting that gives it the higher gas mileage etc. but that would not pass the emissions test..
As noted in the article, this only applies to diesel vehicles.
I'll be curious to see how Germany reacts to an American bureaucracy manhandling one of their country's most famous brand names. Maybe now we'll see the EU quit dancing around and hit Google with a massive anti-trust lawsuit. You folks ready for some economic warfare?
I'll be curious to see how Germany reacts to an American bureaucracy manhandling one of their country's most famous brand names. Maybe now we'll see the EU quit dancing around and hit Google with a massive anti-trust lawsuit. You folks ready for some economic warfare?
Will Germany go to war over this? Hmmm. No. It's 1/2 million diesel engine cars stretched over 7-8 years. This isn't even on the radar screen.
They have too many real issues at the moment, like 30 million immigrants headed to Europe from Africa & the Middle East and no agreement on what to do about it.
Diesel Volkswagens and Audis have hidden software that detects annual state emissions tests, turns on full emissions control systems during the tests, and turns them off again when the test is over -so they can pollute and get better gas mileage the rest of the year. This willful violation of US law could cost VW $38,000 in fines per vehicle (x 500,000 vehicles = $18 billion), plus recall costs.
The scam gives VW a competitive advantage (they could claim better gas mileage) over US manufacturers.
The advantage was that they were the only ones who were able to bring a low priced diesel car to the US that could (supposedly) pass EPA emissions requirements. Many other brands have affordable diesel cars in Europe, but almost universally they claimed they couldn't find a price/demand equilibrium point in the US market that would allow them to recoup the high cost of adapting their engines to meet those aggressive EPA standards. Turns out, VW cheated by using an algorithm that would detect that it was on an EPA emissions test that would dramatically change the engine tune only for the duration of the test.
Apparently, they were able to meet the NOx standards with a very aggressive amount of Exhaust Gas Recirculation. Long term, however, that EGR would lead to much carbon build up in the intake tract. When running on the "normal" tune, the tail pipe of NOx were as much as 40 times the standard. Controlling NOx long-term in a reliable manner typically requires expensive after-treatment systems (urea injection) for the exhaust.
The advantage was that they were the only ones who were able to bring a low priced diesel car to the US that could (supposedly) pass EPA emissions requirements. Many other brands have affordable diesel cars in Europe, but almost universally they claimed they couldn't find a price/demand equilibrium point in the US market that would allow them to recoup the high cost of adapting their engines to meet those aggressive EPA standards.
So this is an attempt to push out the sole diesel market out of US?
The advantage was that they were the only ones who were able to bring a low priced diesel car to the US that could (supposedly) pass EPA emissions requirements. Many other brands have affordable diesel cars in Europe, but almost universally they claimed they couldn't find a price/demand equilibrium point in the US market that would allow them to recoup the high cost of adapting their engines to meet those aggressive EPA standards. Turns out, VW cheated by using an algorithm that would detect that it was on an EPA emissions test that would dramatically change the engine tune only for the duration of the test.
Apparently, they were able to meet the NOx standards with a very aggressive amount of Exhaust Gas Recirculation. Long term, however, that EGR would lead to much carbon build up in the intake tract. When running on the "normal" tune, the tail pipe of NOx were as much as 40 times the standard. Controlling NOx long-term in a reliable manner typically requires expensive after-treatment systems (urea injection) for the exhaust.
It's odd that these vehicles make up a large portion of sales in Europe that is supposedly far more environmentally aware than the U.S.
I'll be curious to see how Germany reacts to an American bureaucracy manhandling one of their country's most famous brand names. Maybe now we'll see the EU quit dancing around and hit Google with a massive anti-trust lawsuit. You folks ready for some economic warfare?
Uh; many people have said European cars fall apart real fast. Otherwise they'd rule and Americans would NOT even look at the Japanese and Korean cars twice. Didn't VW almost stop selling in the US a few years back? Word was they went off the rails once the 1st Beetle went away about 40 years ago.
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