Posted on 09/20/2015 2:48:12 PM PDT by kristinn
The Obama administration on Friday directed Volkswagen to recall nearly a half-million cars, saying the automaker illegally installed software in its diesel-power cars to evade standards for reducing smog.
The Environmental Protection Agency accused the German automaker of using software to detect when the car is undergoing its periodic state emissions testing. Only during such tests are the cars’ full emissions control systems turned on. During normal driving situations, the controls are turned off, allowing the cars to spew as much as 40 times as much pollution as allowed under the Clean Air Act, the E.P.A. said.
“We expected better from Volkswagen,” said Cynthia Giles, the E.P.A.’s assistant administrator for the Office of Enforcement and Compliance. She called the automaker’s actions “a threat to public health.”
Agency officials issued the car company a notice of violation and said it had admitted to the use of a so-called defeat device. The recall involves 4-cylinder Volkswagen and Audi vehicles from model years 2009-15.
A spokeswoman for Volkswagen confirmed that the company had received the notice and said the automaker was cooperating with the investigation. She declined to comment further on the case.
The software was designed to conceal the cars’ emission of the pollutant nitrogen oxide, which contributes to the creation of ozone and smog. The pollutants are linked to a range of health problems, including asthma attacks, other respiratory diseases and premature death.
Experts in automotive technology said that disengaging the pollution controls on a diesel-fueled car can yield better performance, including increased torque and acceleration.
(Excerpt) Read more at nytimes.com ...
Isn’t it funny how an air pump that injects clean air into the exhaust to dilute it is an Ok method to achieve ppm, but this isn’t.
Embedded systems shenanigans..lol
I love it :-)
“It was Mr. Kodjak’s group, in conducting research on diesel vehicles, that first noticed the discrepancy between Volkswagen’s emissions in testing laboratories and on the road. They brought the issue to the attention of the E.P.A.”
Looks like they MET THEIR MATCH. As anyone from my generation can tell you - you’re not going to come out on top if you mess with Kojak.
So the car runs better without that emisions cr**. We can’t have that!!
Ping......
Lord no. Just wait until the cost of these fines and recalls add another 5 grand to vehicle costs. I don’t think people realize how much of the vehicle cost is due to these idiot mandates. Manufacturers should start listing them as mandatory line items on the window sticker
Sounds like a sleazy move by Volkswagen.
Who loves ya, baby?
Without that emissions junk - that engine gets like 44 MPG - range of over 600 miles. The greenstapo should like that.
VW will give out a software patch to remove the offending program. Then all the folks who own these cars will not be able to pass their emission tests.
This is amusing. Diesel engines use much less fuel than their gasoline counterparts. The EPA has had it out for Diesel cars for years. VW did the logical thing - game the system which is exactly what the EPA does. Diesel pollution is responsible for all these deaths, eh? Prove it! The EPA needs to go.
Wow.
Somebody at Volkswagen was sneaky enough to figure out how to fake-out the government testing program?
The VA will be trying to hire this person.
So that’s how one gets great performance and low emissions out of a diesel VW.
Or give them a software patch that enables the car to pass the test, but prevent those in the northern climes from being able to start the cars in the winter.
VW needs to start making the WW2 Schwimwagens again. Think of a “Thing” with a propeller on the back.
/johnny
This is gonna put a damper on the ole Fahrvergnügen! Ja!
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