Cheaters? Recalls? Discuss

VW scandal: emissions cheats could face criminal charges




Transport minister unveils new measures allowing government to prosecute carmakers




Carmakers who cheat emissions rules with illegal devices could face unlimited fines and criminal charges for deceiving environmental tests under new measures set to be introduced in the wake of the Volkswagen scandal.

The transport minister, Jesse Norman, launched a consultation on Friday to outline the crackdown, although any law will not be retrospective so could not be used to target Volkswagen.

“We continue to take the unacceptable actions of Volkswagen extremely seriously, and we are framing new measures to crack down on emissions cheats in future,” Norman said. “Those who cheat should be held to proper account in this country, legally and financially, for their actions.”


The Volkswagen emissions scandal explained



Downing Street said new powers would go above and beyond European requirements and the government would be able to prosecute any manufacturer who cheated on the required tests for vehicles. However, it is thought sentences will only include unlimited fines rather than prison sentences.

Crucially, the rules will extend to imported cars which Downing Street said was the key reason the UK was previously unable to impose fines on Volkswagen, which was ordered to pay $2.8bn in criminal penalties in the United States for cheating on emissions tests, revealed in 2015.

“At the moment, we are limited to taking action against a manufacturer who obtained or sought to obtain type approval in the UK. We intend to expand this so that we are able to take action against a manufacturer, importer or dealer who places a vehicle using a defeat device on the UK market,” a UK government official said.

VW, which is the world’s biggest carmaker, admitted that 11m diesel cars were programmed to turn on pollution controls during testing and off while on the road, where they exceeded air emissions limits many times over. The company is paying $1.5bn in a civil case brought by the government and spending $11bn to buy back cars and offer buyers compensation.

At the time of the scandal, the then-transport minister Patrick McLoughlin said the company “had behaved in an appalling way” and deserved to be severely punished.

“These devices were made illegal in 1998 and it’s fairly unbelievable that a company the size and reputation of Volkswagen has been doing something like this and finding ways round this legislation,” he told a select committee hearing. “I think they are going to suffer substantial damage as a result and they deserve to, quite frankly.”


VW suspends media chief amid scandal over fume tests on monkeys


About 1.2m of the Volkswagen cars were sold in Britain and the Department for Transport set up a £1.1m vehicle emissions testing programme, paid for by Volkswagen, to test a range of the most popular diesel vehicles in the UK in the wake of the scandal, but found no other manufacturer tested was using a similar strategy.

The beleaguered company came under fresh fire last month after it was revealed it helped to fund experiments in which monkeys and humans breathed in car fumes for hours at a time.

The German chancellor, Angela Merkel, said there was an urgent need for the company to reveal the true extent of the experiments, commissioned by the European Research Group of Environment and Health in the Transport Sector (EUGT), which is funded by Volkswagen, Daimler and BMW.

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Report: Prosecutors raid homes of Audi employees in diesel probe

Read more: http://autoweek.com/article/vw-dies...mes-audi-employees-diesel-probe#ixzz55ySq6fMr​

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Prosecutors from Munich carried out searches in the homes of current and former Audi employees on Wednesday as part of an investigation into diesel emission control software cheating by the automaker's parent company, Reuters reports. Raids were carried out in several residences in the German states of Baden-Wuerttemberg, Bavaria and Rhineland-Palatinate, as prosecutors continue to collect evidence in the nearly two-and-a-half-year-old scandal.On the same day, prosecutors from Stuttgart also announced that they are investigating two employees of supplier giant Robert Bosch as part of a probe into Chrysler diesel emissions in the U.S., according to Reuters. The latter investigation centers on allegations of reduced operation of emissions control systems in diesel versions of the Ram 1500 and Jeep Grand Cherokee, an investigation that is still ongoing.In February 2017, Bosch announced a $327.5 million settlement with U.S. owners of diesel VW, Audi and Porsche models equipped with 2.0- and 3.0-liter engines, without admitting to any wrongdoing. Bosch's alleged role in the diesel cheating efforts, if any, remains murky -- the company has not publicly admitted to general or specific efforts to aid automakers in bypassing emission tests in the U.S.​

[h=2]VW DIESEL SCANDAL[/h][h=3]Surprise! VW diesel owners will get cash from Bosch too[/h]In addition to receiving compensation from Volkswagen, owners of 2.0-liter and 3.0-liter VW, Audi and Porsche TDI models will also receive money from a company they may never have heard of. The ...

German police previously raided Audi offices and factories in March 2017, also carrying out searches at the German offices of U.S. law firm Jones Day, which drew a public rebuke from Audi corporate parent Volkswagen. The March 2017 searches caught Audi by surprise -- that particular VW division had remained relatively unscathed by the diesel crisis until then -- and increased fears of criminal investigations at Porsche, which is also a part of the Volkswagen Group.This week's searches of residences of current and former Audi employees follow an unexpected twist in the Volkswagen diesel crisis: Just days ago, details of a 2014 U.S.-based laboratory study emerged in which monkeys were exposed to diesel exhaust, in an effort by several German automakers to disprove World Health Organization claims that diesel exhaust could cause cancer. VW CEO Matthias Mueller denounced the tests earlier this week after a major outcry from environmental and animal rights groups as well as German politicians, including Chancellor Angela Merkel.

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If governments will not punish VW’s shocking behaviour, consumers must


If governments will not punish VW’s shocking behaviour, consumers must



The company is mired in scandals of pollution and animal cruelty. Does it deserve to be rewarded with electric car sales?

It is hard to think how Volkswagen could top a scandal involving it selling drivers 11 million cars that produced more pollution than advertised, harming human health and shamefully cheating regulators’ tests in the process. But the past fortnight’s mind-boggling revelations about research at the world’s biggest carmaker have come close.
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First, it emerged the firm had taken the lead in a 2014 experiment on 10 macaque monkeys to test the health impact of exposure to nitrogen dioxide (NO[SUB]2[/SUB]), a toxic gas produced by diesel cars. A VW Beetle, fitted with a cheat device of the sort the company used to game pollution checks during lab tests, pumped fumes into the monkeys’ chambers as they watched cartoons.
Later it was revealed that in 2015 an automotive lobby group part-funded by VW tested the effects of NO[SUB]2[/SUB] exposure on 25 healthy young people in Germany.
It’s often remarked that the banks emerged from the financial crash unpunished and unreformed. But the degree of effort that VW put into deceiving the world about the health impact of its diesel cars, and the pollution they were really generating, could be viewed as a bigger crime.

The Volkswagen emissions scandal explained




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This is not just a case of destroying jobs and damaging people’s lives by creating a credit crunch: this is a matter of life and death. Nearly 9,500 people die prematurely in London alone each year because of the city’s illegally high levels of NO[SUB]2[/SUB].
We will never know the actual toll of the cheating and lobbying that VW took part in. But what we do know is that the punishment has been found wanting.
Chief executive Martin Winterkorn quit in 2015 after the emissions scandal was discovered. Last week, VW’s chief lobbyist, Thomas Steg, was suspended in the wake of revelations about the tests, which were carried out by the European Research Group on Environment and Health in the Transport Sector (EUGT), a car lobby group funded by Volkswagen, Daimler and BMW. VW’s new chief executive, Matthias Müller, who was not in charge at the time of the tests, said: “We are currently in the process of investigating the work of the EUGT, which was dissolved in 2017, and drawing all the necessary consequences.”
But those consequences should arrive at his door too, because of his failure to “drain the swamp” during his leadership of VW. Steg was promoted by Müller shortly after the emissions scandal, and reported directly to him.
The reality is that VW has hardly been hurt at all by the scandals, despite them costing $25bn (£17.6bn). The company now sells more models than ever and, thanks to a post-dieselgate cost-cutting programme, has a growing cash pile.

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However, the blame doesn’t stop at Müller’s door. European governments have failed to punish the German car giant for the contempt it showed to a regulatory regime designed to protect human health.
While $4.3bn of fines have been imposed by US authorities, EU ministers have yet to hit the firm with any financial penalty. In the face of such timidity, VW has maintained it does not need to pay compensation to European drivers, including the 1.2 million cars sold in the UK that were fitted with cheat devices. To the UK’s credit, on Friday ministers did pledge unlimited fines and criminal charges for carmakers found fitting cheat devices, but that will do nothing to punish past failings.
So if governments and the car industry can’t be relied on, where does that leave us? It’s time motorists exercised their consumer power.
The car industry has, finally, got the message: diesel is over, and electric cars are the future, maybe not in the short term, but definitely in the long run. Even VW recognises that, with Müller doubling investment on zero-emission vehicles last year.
So as a consumer, the question is: who do you want to reward? Will it be the Teslas and the Nissans, which have forged ahead in this new electric world and pioneered efforts to clean up our air? Or – much as you might fancy an electric Golf – will it be the cheats with the monkeys?

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"The TDI IS CLEAN & GOOD FOR YOU, TAKE A SHOWER IN ITS GASSES AND IT WILL CLENSE YOUR SOUL!"

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This is a weekly commentary by external experts.
Volkswagen AG admitted it conducted diesel-emissions testing on humans and animals following a news report in January that exposed the practice. The revelations sparked an uproar in Germany over the use of animals and humans in tests that appeared aimed at fooling the public to believe diesel emissions posed no public health hazard.

A European research group owned by Volkswagen, BMW and Mercedes-Benz maker Daimler commissioned the experiments, which were conducted in 2013 by a laboratory in the U.S.
BMW and Mercedes condemned the experiments and distanced themselves from the study. Volkswagen issued a statement saying it suspended the company’s chief lobbyist, Thomas Steg, who also was in charge of external communications. The company said it is investigating whether Mr. Steg knew about the experiments.
Volkswagen Chief Executive Matthias Müller, who became CEO in 2015 after VW was stung by a scandal for evading emissions standards, condemned the experiments as “unethical and revolting.” He said they had nothing to do with scientific research, adding: “There are things that you just don’t do.”
Three crisis-management experts scrutinize VW’s response.
Lanny J Davis and Josh Galper, partners, Trident DMG and Davis, Goldberg & Galper: “Mr. Müller’s personal statement about the crisis hit the right notes of outrage regarding human and animal rights, but a closer read reveals other serious [issues].
“First, he was silent about the underlying allegations of rigged diesel-emissions tests that could have been used in the public domain to support [the company's] positions. It is a reminder of the scandal that prompted VW to hire him in 2015, making it even more necessary that Mr. Müller address it. Not doing so raises more questions than it answers and tarnishes his credibility. Punting on this issue, while loudly condemning the testing on ethical grounds, makes the statement come off as a bid for deflection instead of an earnest reaction.
“The company’s commitment to investigate who knew what and when…is a good start, but its initial disciplinary measure dilutes things. VW chose only to suspend one executive for his potential knowledge of this study. Allowing the suspension to be requested and voluntary instead of a company-ordered decision–and not disclosing whether he would continue to be paid–made the company look weak and not serious about enforcement. It also omitted the reason why this particular official…would be the right person to discipline.”
Laura Guitar, executive vice president crisis and issues, Rbb Communications: “On its own, the suspension of Thomas Steg is a wholly insufficient response. It’s clear a single individual is not the root of Volkswagen’s problems and that larger cultural and ethical issues must be addressed. That said, the comments by Mr. Müller calling the testing ‘unethical,’ ‘repulsive’ and ‘deeply shameful’ signal a willingness to address those issues, as does his apology.

“This scandal, following the controversy around Volkswagen’s diesel car manipulation, reflects a fundamental problem that is wider than either of the issues themselves. Together, they point to an absence of guiding moral and ethical principles within the company’s corporate culture at the time they occurred.
“Finally, statements of condemnation and apology are far easier to produce than is meaningful change in an established corporate culture. The actual change needed will require purposeful internal investigations to identify any other circumstances that may not yet have come to light and concerted effort over time to rebuild trust with shareholders, employees, customers, regulators and others.”
Adonis E. Hoffman, adjunct professor, Georgetown University and chief executive, the Advisory Counsel: “Trust is the currency of business, and Volkswagen’s legacy of deception leaves it penurious when it comes to crises. Mr. Müller acknowledges the experiments were ‘wrong, unethical and repulsive,’ but these words provide little comfort to consumers and shareholders who expect today’s business leaders to be unequivocal in their apology and unconditional in their accountability.
“Mr. Müller’s effort to distance VW from the tests and deflect responsibility is troubling. Saying ‘What happened should never have happened, and ‘I regret it very much’ is a far cry from clearer words to convey CEO ownership, contrition and commitment to correct the problem and chart a new course.
“Mr. Müller’s statements suggest he may just be going through the motions. He says, ‘I am truly sorry that VW was involved in the tests’ and ‘I sincerely apologize for any misconduct or misjudgment’ by those involved in the company–but he never says: ‘I take full responsibility and I promise it will not happen again.’ That statement would have added immense credibility to his mea culpa, which rings hollow. VW’s statements invite more questions than answers; they must do more to regain lost trust.”

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Volkswagen is demanding Dieselgate trials be delayed because of “inflammatory” comparisons drawn between controversial animal testing scandal and the Nazis’ use of gas chambers. The lawyer who drew the comparison isn’t backing down.


Many marketing departments would probably give their right arm to be featured free-of-charge in a Netflix series these days. But this probably wasn’t what Volkswagen had in mind. The first episode of a new documentary on the global streaming site, called “Dirty Money,” delved into the corporate greed behind VW’s long-running Dieselgate scandal. It also honed in on revelations that a lobby group, sponsored by VW and other German carmakers, had tested diesel emissions on monkeys.
The documentary released last week is pretty damning. Particularly some of the language: “One cannot help to think back throughout history to individuals being gassed by a person who was actually at the opening of the first Volkswagen factory,” Michael Melkerson, a lawyer who is leading a class-action lawsuit against VW, says in the documentary. The allusion to Adolf Hitler and the Nazis (who did in fact help found VW) is clear.
For VW, which has paid out more than $20 billion because of Dieselgate and watched its reputation be dragged through the mud for nearly three years now, this was a step to far. The German carmaker now says it can no longer get a fair trial in the United States – at least not right now. Mr. Melkerson disagrees.

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[h=1]Volkswagen can’t delay trials because of Netflix documentary[/h]By Reuters

February 20, 2018 | 5:27pm

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[h=4]MORE ON:[/h][h=3]VOLKSWAGEN[/h]​

[h=2]Mercedes maker seen as using VW-like emissions tests[/h]
[h=2]German carmakers funded studies that made young people huff emissions[/h]
[h=2]Ridiculous class-action lawsuits are costing you tons of money[/h]
[h=2]Man reunited with car 20 years after forgetting where he parked[/h]


A Virginia state court judge on Tuesday rejected a request by the US unit of Volkswagen AG to delay several of the company’s trials over excess emissions because of “inflammatory” comments made by a lawyer representing car owners that it fears will prejudice the jury.
Fairfax County Circuit Court Judge Bruce White said after a hearing that he would proceed with a Feb. 26 trial involving a North Carolina man who bought a 2014 diesel Jetta.
Volkswagen said publicity from a Netflix documentary that disclosed the company had jointly sponsored tests that exposed monkeys in 2014 to toxic diesel fumes could prejudice its chances of receiving a fair trial.
Judge White said he was satisfied a fair panel could be seated for the expected three-week trial. “The jurors don’t know much about these cases,” White said generally of high-profile cases.
The German carmaker is being sued by some consumers after it admitted in September 2015 to cheating on diesel emissions tests, sparking the biggest business crisis in its history.
Nearly all US owners of affected cars agreed to take part in a $25 billion settlement in 2016 in the United States that addressed claims from them, environmental regulators, US states and dealers. About 2,000 owners, however, opted out and most are pursuing court claims seeking additional compensation.
Volkswagen of America had asked White to delay that trial for at least six months after a lawyer for more than 300 US VW diesel owners, Michael Melkersen, gave an interview in the Netflix documentary in which he referred to the company testing diesel fumes on monkeys.
In the Netflix interview, Melkersen criticized the tests, adding: “One cannot help to think back throughout history of another series of events involving individuals being gassed by a person who was actually at the opening of the very first Volkswagen factory,” an apparent reference to Nazi leader Adolf Hitler and the Holocaust.
In its legal filing, VW’s lawyers argued those comments would prevent a fair trial.
Volkswagen lawyers said that “pretrial publicity has connected [the company] directly with Hitler and the Holocaust,” which they said was not relevant to a trial about claims of consumer fraud.
Melkersen previously said it was “another tactic to postpone [Volkswagen’s] day of reckoning.”
In response to Judge White’s ruling, a VW spokeswoman said the company looks “forward to demonstrating at the upcoming trial that the plaintiff has suffered no damages and that his demands for compensation are extravagant and unfounded.”

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No biggie everyone gets a raise ...........!

Nothing to see here folks except our sales increases and as predicted!.........

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After tens of thousands of VW diesel automobiles, it is Daimler's turn for an official recall this week: Investigators have apparently found a particularly innovative manipulation technology inside the Vito van. The vehicle's engine management system was apparently programmed so that the amount of diesel exhaust fluid (AdBlue) -- used to reduce nitrogen oxide emissions -- injected into the SCR catalyzer was reduced to ensure that the fluid would not have to be refilled prior to the next scheduled service appointment. The consequence was that in many driving situations, the car would emit more nitrogen oxide despite being equipped with emissions reduction systems.

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BMW to recall 11,700 cars after installing wrong engine software

Reuters
February 23, 2018

FRANKFURT (Reuters) - German carmaker BMW <BMWG.DE> said on Friday it would recall 11,700 cars to fix their engine management software after it discovered that the wrong programming had been installed on its luxury 5- and 7-Series models.

"In the course of internal tests, the BMW Group has discovered that a correctly developed software update was mistakenly assigned to certain unsuitable model-versions," the company said in a statement.

"The BMW Group informed the relevant authorities immediately."

BMW issued the statement after a report in news weekly Der Spiegel suggested it had installed software that manipulated emissions of harmful gases such as nitrogen oxide, something its management has always denied.

Competitor Volkswagen <VOWG_p.DE> reached a multi-billion-dollar U.S. settlement after admitting installing so-called "defeat devices" on its diesel models designed to game emissions tests.

VW has been roiled by the "Dieselgate" emissions scandal, which has forced it to set aside 25.8 billion euros ($31.7 billion) to cover fines and related costs, of which it has paid out nearly 20 billion euros.

BMW said the models affected were 5- and 7-Series cars made between 2012 and 2017 containing high-performance diesel engines and three turbo chargers.

BMW did not say where the cars were but said it would cooperate with the relevant authorities on further steps.



($1 = 0.8129 euros)



(Reporting by Edward Taylor; Writing by Douglas Busvine, editing by David Evans)

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BMW said the models affected were 5- and 7-Series cars made between 2012 and 2017 containing high-performance diesel engines and three turbo chargers.

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PetrolDave said:

So some BMW diesels have been driving around for up to SIX years with the wrong engine management software [/I][/COLOR]

Do automakers do ANY proper software testing nowadays???

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