The US Environmental Protection Agency reports that it is investigating the engines in some Volkswagen, Audi and Porsche brand diesel vehicles equipped with 3.0-liter engines. The German company denies it.
The United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has reported a new violation of the country’s Clean Air Act by the Volkswagen group, “which developed and installed a tampering device” in some diesel vehicles of Volkswagen, Audi and Porsche brands equipped with 3.0-liter engines. For its part, the Volkswagen group reacted in a statement to the note denying these claims: “Volkswagen wants to emphasize that no software has been installed in the 3-liter V6 engines to alter emissions in a prohibited manner,” the brief statement said of the company.
As they was reporting by the EPA in a statement, the vehicles were affecting by this software correspond to model years between 2014 and 2016 and stated that they exceed the emissions of nitrogen oxides (NOx) by up to nine times the Agency’s standards. This new notification covers the Volkswagen, Audi and Porsche brands, as well as Volkswagen Group of America and Porsche Cars North America.
The models affected by this device was corresponding to diesel versions of the Volkswagen Touareg, the Porsche Cayenne and the Audi A6 Quattro, Q7 Quattro, A8, A8 L and Q5. The EPA was indicating that it has initiated, like the California Air Resources Board, an investigation into these has been alleged actions of the German automobile consortium.
This second notification was affecting 10,000 diesel vehicles which are using this kind of fuel had been sold in the United States since the 2014 model years, as well as an unknown number of vehicles corresponding to the 2016 model year. The EPA has been noted that this second measure has been in addition to the one published on September 18 regarding software that they was altering the emissions of 2.0-litre diesel engines by detecting that the car has been undergoing a laboratory test for them to see exactly what can they do to fix the problem.
The agency’s Office of Compliance and Enforcement Assurance Assistant Administrator Cynthia Giles said Volkswagen “has once again failed” in its obligation to comply with air quality legislation for all Americans.
“All businesses should be playing by the same rules. EPA, along with our state and federal partners, will continue to investigate these serious issues in order to ensure the benefits of the Clean Air Act, to ensure a level playing field for responsible businesses, and to make sure that all the consumers get the environmental protection they expect,” he added.
New EPA tests
The organization noted that, following the September 18 notification regarding 2.0-liter engines, it began testing all 2015 and 2016 diesel for the cars which have this kind of fuel are available in the United States, using testing processes designed to detect potential emissions tampering software.
According to the EPA, Volkswagen has been manufacturing and and they has been installing software in the control unit module of these vehicles that detects that the car is being tested to verify environmental standards, reducing emissions and meeting homologation requirements.
“Exactly one second after completing the initial test phase, the vehicle immediately changes different operating parameters that increase NOx emissions and indicates in the software that it is moving towards “normal” mode, where NOx emissions exceed EPA standards by up to nine times,” the Agency was adding.
In this sense, he was adding that the Volkswagen has the responsibility to fix the emission systems of these vehicles and stressed that these do not represent a safety hazard for their owners or for the vehicles themselves.
