It looks like Volkswagen is up to eyeballs in bad news today. The EPA is reporting that Volkswagen has used an illegal device to bypass EPA certification for every one of its 2.0-liter TDI engines that are found in all 2009 to 2015 Golf, Jetta, Bug and A3 models. The claim is that Volklswagen has implanted software into its ECU that can detect when an EPA test is being done, and it will alter the engine to produce less NOx, thereby passing certification. In actual driving though, these engines may be producing up to 40x the legal limit of NOx.
That is not good.
Things get worse for Volkswagen, as according to the reports, VW has sold as many as 482,000 of these cars and the EPA can impose as fine as high as $35,500 per car. That is a bill that rings up to more than $17-Billion. Yes, with a “b.” This will easily be the largest fine ever levied on an automotive company by the government if it goes through.
As for its part, VW is staying mum on the subject aside from stating that they are cooperating with the investigation. The current plan of action appears to be an ECU reflash from Volkswagen that will get rid of the cheat software. This will all be done for free as part of a mandatory recall. The big issue with that plan is people’s concerns over if this will affect performance and fuel economy in any negative way.
There is still a lot we don’t know about this story, but we will continue to keep digging. Keep it locked here on AutoTalk.com for more updates as we can get them.
