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[Sir Tigger KC]

No not that Lord Opti!!   

Volkswagen Audi Group are under investigation by the Environmental Protection Agency in the US for having installed software that masks the true emissions during testing.  Reuters are reporting that V.A.G. could be fined up to $18 Billion!! 

If its true, all those diesel Golf's, Beetle's Passat's and A3's are much dirtier than advertised and are chucking out 40 times the amount of pollutants allowed!    Again if true, this must be one of the biggest corporate scams ever! 

http://www.reuters.com/article/2015/09/18/us-usa-volkswagen-idUSKCN0RI1VK20150918

Vorsprung Durch Technik!   

[deviator]

It doesn't surprise me, they are vastly over rated in my humble opinion. Did you see this article from last month?
http://www.computerworld.com/article/2971826/cybercrime-hacking/hack-to-steal-cars-with-keyless-ignition-volkswagen-spent-2-years-hiding-flaw.html

Great company there isn't it?

[Rods2]

No not that Lord Opti!!   

Volkswagen Audi Group are under investigation by the Environmental Protection Agency in the US for having installed software that masks the true emissions during testing.  Reuters are reporting that V.A.G. could be fined up to $18 Billion!! 

If its true, all those diesel Golf's, Beetle's Passat's and A3's are much dirtier than advertised and are chucking out 40 times the amount of pollutants allowed!    Again if true, this must be one of the biggest corporate scams ever! 

http://www.reuters.com/article/2015/09/18/us-usa-volkswagen-idUSKCN0RI1VK20150918

Vorsprung Durch Splutnik!   

Fixed.

[Kevin Wood]

Most cars have been "tuned" around the test cycles they get put through, so will achieve nothing like the claimed figures on a real-world journey.

I suppose it's a matter of where you draw the line.

Why on earth anyone would by a diseasel, especially a VAG one, in the US, where petrol costs buttons, I'm not entirely sure.

[Sir Tigger KC]

Most cars have been "tuned" around the test cycles they get put through, so will achieve nothing like the claimed figures on a real-world journey.

I suppose it's a matter of where you draw the line.

Why on earth anyone would by a diseasel, especially a VAG one, in the US, where petrol costs buttons, I'm not entirely sure.

Probably more popular in the Democratic voting states like California, Connecticut etc than place like Texas or Florida.    In fact many fuel stations in Houston don't bother stocking diesel. 

[Sir Tigger KC]

So the Beeb have finally woken up to this story and it's developing fast with regulators in Europe and Asia taking interest.  VAG shares have taken a hammering and they've set aside $6.5 billion to cover the costs.  I suspect they'll need more. 

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-34325005

[tunnie]

Wonder if they will pull out of the Red Bull F1 deal now?

[Marks DTM Calib]

I wonder if the tax bands for VAG diesels will get adjusted ........or if they will be compulsory recalled for software updates.

[Diamond Black Geezer]

I admire hugely what engineers have been able to do these last 20 or so years regarding engines emissions and torque/power outputs. This is a bit of an Automotive Watergate moment However, I think this, to a point, reflects on the massive demands being placed on design teams. The goal posts are set higher and higher, there has to be a limit with chat can be done. We are, after all, setting fire to a combustible substance - there's going to be some nasty smelling stuff! This goalpost moving is done with no regard for real-world economies. By that I mean how much does it cost the planet to redesign a whole engine family, run it for a few years, then scrap it and start again.

In a way we're facing an emissions version of Group B rallying... they were just too damn fast and it cost lives. More isn't automatically better. Ask any mechanic about the fragility, the high-stresses, incredible fine tolerances of a modern engine, the two choices if repair - replace an unfeasibly expensive set of parts, or simply bin the engine/car and buy a new one. Insurance writeoff. Send the thing to landfill. 

And then we consider the pitfalls of new tech for new tech's sake, diesels filters that clog up if you do that strange act known as driving around town, for one. It feels like we're approaching the elastic limit of what can be done with the Internal Combustion Engine - to the point where they're literally impossible for manufacturers to make them, I suppose.

[05omegav6]

I certainly wouldn't want to be a VW/Audi owner living in a low emission state such as California

Still that'll learn them

[Field Marshal Dr. Opti]

I'm sure it was a genuine mistake and that VW were not trying to pull the wool over our eyes.

 

[Kevin Wood]

I'm waiting to see how many other manufacturers come to grief too!

I can't see VAG writing much of their own ECU firmware, so I'm guessing this is a "feature" that Bosch et al sell for their customers to enable when mapping an ECU. I can't believe other manufacturers aren't doing exactly the same thing.

Of course, in Europe, they submit a "golden" vehicle for testing, with a nudge and a wink, so it could have a completely different config to a production vehicle anyway.

Now the genie is out of the lamp, I suspect a few are in line to get their a@rses whipped and I wouldn't be surprised if a few emission bands get changed retrospectively.

Then again, depends on the balance of power between the environmental lobbyists and the "but it would be harmful to business" argument.

[henryd]

Have a look at Auto Express magazines road tests, they always publish the claimed emissions and the actual emissions from the vehicle on test,I've not yet seen one match the claimed output which would suggest that this could go viral,that would take a little heat off VW though.

[BazaJT]

Much like the "muscle car"wars where BHP figures grew to be -shall we say-rather optimistic VW are not going to be the only ones doing this it's just that they're the first to get caught out

[ronnyd]

One good eruption from a super volcano and all these attempts at emission controls seem like very small potatoes.