Hamartia Antidote
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Volkswagen Busted For Cheating On Diesel Models -- And Owners Won't Like The Probable 'Fix'
"The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency today announced it will force Volkswagen to fix nearly a half-million of its popular “TDI” diesel-engine vehicles sold in the U.S. since 2008 because the agency discovered VW had installed clever software that turned on all the engine’s emissions control systems only during emissions testing.
Under normal driving conditions, the software, which is known as a “defeat device,” enabled the diesel engines to spew out levels of pollutants that exceeded federal standards, the EPA determined.
Using a defeat device in cars to evade clean air standards is illegal and a threat to public health,” said Cynthia Giles, Assistant Administrator for the Office of Enforcement and Compliance Assurance, in a statement. “Working closely with the California Air Resources Board, EPA is committed to making sure that all automakers play by the same rules. EPA will continue to investigate these very serious matters.”
The EPA’s Notice of Violation (NOV) of provisions of the Clean Air Act isn’t a safety issue – and for now, technically isn’t a “recall” – so the cars are perfectly driveable. Owners of the models listed below don’t have to take any action.
• Jetta TDI (2009 – 2015)
• Beetle TDI (2009 – 2015)
• Golf TDI (2009 – 2015)
• Passat TDI (2014 – 2015
• Audi A3 TDI (2009-2015)
But here’s where it gets interesting: the likely “fix” isn’t going to please owners – if it plays out the way I suspect.
The solution probably is going to involve reprogramming the diesel cars’ sophisticated engine-management software to bring emissions to a level that complies with the current standard for diesel vehicles (the pollutant in question is oxides of nitrogen, or NOx, of which diesel engines intrinsically develop more than gasoline engines). As I understand the technology, the only way to reprogram the engine to get NOx emissions to acceptable levels will be to reduce engine power and torque. That means on-the-road performance will be compromised. The reprogramming could mean that the diesel engines’ outstanding fuel economy – the primary reason most people buy a diesel – also will be reduced.
Volkswagen may find another solution – but I doubt it. The only alternative remedy I can envision – though let it be known I am not an engineer – would be to retrofit all 482,000 affected cars with the sophisticated newer exhaust aftertreatment systems most diesel-engine models now employ to more meticulously treat emissions downstream of the engine. If that’s even technically possible, it would be horrifically expensive.
As it stands now, “VW may be liable for civil penalties and injunctive relief for the violations alleged in the NOV,” the EPA’s statement said. If the letter of law is followed, VW could face billions of dollars in fines for installing the software algorithm first discovered by researchers at West Virginia University (full disclosure: my alma mater). The special operating mode “results in cars that meet emissions standards in the laboratory or testing station, but during normal operation, emit nitrogen oxides, or NOx, at up to 40 times the standard,” the EPA said.
Stay tuned. Although life and limb are not potentially impacted in the way of several recent high-profile safety recalls, the fallout from VW’s deliberate actions could get ugly. The last car company nailed for violating the Clean Air Act, Hyundai Motor (also the maker of Kia vehicles), late last year paid a $300-million fine for overstating the fuel economy of numerous models.
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Volkswagen Admits to Cheating on U.S. Emissions Tests - Bloomberg Business
"Volkswagen AG admitted to systematically cheating on U.S. air pollution tests for years, leaving the automaker vulnerable to billions in fines and possible criminal prosecution.
The company sold diesel Volkswagen and Audi cars with software that turns on full pollution controls only when the car is undergoing official emissions testing.
During normal driving, the cars pollute 10 times to 40 times the legal limits, the Environmental Protection Agency said. EPA called the technology a “defeat device.”
Violations of the Clean Air Act could be referred to the Justice Department for criminal prosecution, EPA said. The potential financial liability is unclear. EPA could fine the company $37,500 per vehicle, said Cynthia Giles, the agency’s assistant administrator for enforcement. With 482,000 autos part of the case, the total could be $18 billion. The VW investigation involves model years 2009-2015.
“Using a defeat device in cars to evade clean air standards is illegal and a threat to public health,” said Cynthia Giles, the agency’s assistant administrator for enforcement. “EPA is committed to making sure that all automakers play by the same rules.”
Last year Ford Motor Co. was forced to lower mileage estimates and compensate more than 200,000 customers. The Dearborn, Michigan-based company sent out payments ranging from $200 to $1,050. In 2012, an investigation led to Hyundai Motor Co. and Kia Motors Corp. relabeling some of their top-selling U.S. models.
VW ‘Cooperating’
Volkswagen said in a statement it's cooperating with the investigation and unable to comment further. The EPA and the California Air Resources Board said their investigations are continuing.
The affected models include diesel-powered versions of some of VW’s most popular U.S. cars: the Beetle, the Jetta, the Golf and the Passat. The Audi A3 is also part of the investigation. As recently as July, diesel models accounted for 26 percent of VW brand sales in the U.S., according to a company news release.
In a letter to VW Friday, the EPA said the company admitted it had designed and installed software to evade pollution controls after regulators made clear they weren’t going to certify the automakers’ 2016 models.
Surprising Horsepower
Consumers haven’t yet been ordered to return to their dealers for a recall, and it’s safe to keep driving the cars, said Janet McCabe, acting assistant administrator of the agency’s Office of Air and Radiation.
It had been surprising that Volkswagen diesel models were able to get impressive horsepower output and fuel economy performance using less costly pollution control technology than employed in some other automakers' engines, said Bill Visnic, an independent auto analyst in Weirton, West Virginia.
The software workaround might have been what enabled the performance without the expected pollution controls, he said.
“You can’t have anything like this that’s intended to game the system,” Visnic said.
It would be very difficult for Volkswagen to add new pollution-control equipment to the existing engines, so the only way to fix this may be to cut the horsepower and fuel economy performance of the models to lower the pollution output once the software is eliminated, said Visnic, who has been studying engine design for two decades.
The EPA has been concerned about how well its laboratory tests reflect conditions consumers experience in the real world, amid consumer complaints. The agency announced last July it would overhaul the tests, which involve allowing computers to drive cars on a dynamometer to ensure accurate, repeatable results.
"The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency today announced it will force Volkswagen to fix nearly a half-million of its popular “TDI” diesel-engine vehicles sold in the U.S. since 2008 because the agency discovered VW had installed clever software that turned on all the engine’s emissions control systems only during emissions testing.
Under normal driving conditions, the software, which is known as a “defeat device,” enabled the diesel engines to spew out levels of pollutants that exceeded federal standards, the EPA determined.
Using a defeat device in cars to evade clean air standards is illegal and a threat to public health,” said Cynthia Giles, Assistant Administrator for the Office of Enforcement and Compliance Assurance, in a statement. “Working closely with the California Air Resources Board, EPA is committed to making sure that all automakers play by the same rules. EPA will continue to investigate these very serious matters.”
The EPA’s Notice of Violation (NOV) of provisions of the Clean Air Act isn’t a safety issue – and for now, technically isn’t a “recall” – so the cars are perfectly driveable. Owners of the models listed below don’t have to take any action.
• Jetta TDI (2009 – 2015)
• Beetle TDI (2009 – 2015)
• Golf TDI (2009 – 2015)
• Passat TDI (2014 – 2015
• Audi A3 TDI (2009-2015)
But here’s where it gets interesting: the likely “fix” isn’t going to please owners – if it plays out the way I suspect.
The solution probably is going to involve reprogramming the diesel cars’ sophisticated engine-management software to bring emissions to a level that complies with the current standard for diesel vehicles (the pollutant in question is oxides of nitrogen, or NOx, of which diesel engines intrinsically develop more than gasoline engines). As I understand the technology, the only way to reprogram the engine to get NOx emissions to acceptable levels will be to reduce engine power and torque. That means on-the-road performance will be compromised. The reprogramming could mean that the diesel engines’ outstanding fuel economy – the primary reason most people buy a diesel – also will be reduced.
Volkswagen may find another solution – but I doubt it. The only alternative remedy I can envision – though let it be known I am not an engineer – would be to retrofit all 482,000 affected cars with the sophisticated newer exhaust aftertreatment systems most diesel-engine models now employ to more meticulously treat emissions downstream of the engine. If that’s even technically possible, it would be horrifically expensive.
As it stands now, “VW may be liable for civil penalties and injunctive relief for the violations alleged in the NOV,” the EPA’s statement said. If the letter of law is followed, VW could face billions of dollars in fines for installing the software algorithm first discovered by researchers at West Virginia University (full disclosure: my alma mater). The special operating mode “results in cars that meet emissions standards in the laboratory or testing station, but during normal operation, emit nitrogen oxides, or NOx, at up to 40 times the standard,” the EPA said.
Stay tuned. Although life and limb are not potentially impacted in the way of several recent high-profile safety recalls, the fallout from VW’s deliberate actions could get ugly. The last car company nailed for violating the Clean Air Act, Hyundai Motor (also the maker of Kia vehicles), late last year paid a $300-million fine for overstating the fuel economy of numerous models.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Volkswagen Admits to Cheating on U.S. Emissions Tests - Bloomberg Business
"Volkswagen AG admitted to systematically cheating on U.S. air pollution tests for years, leaving the automaker vulnerable to billions in fines and possible criminal prosecution.
The company sold diesel Volkswagen and Audi cars with software that turns on full pollution controls only when the car is undergoing official emissions testing.
During normal driving, the cars pollute 10 times to 40 times the legal limits, the Environmental Protection Agency said. EPA called the technology a “defeat device.”
Violations of the Clean Air Act could be referred to the Justice Department for criminal prosecution, EPA said. The potential financial liability is unclear. EPA could fine the company $37,500 per vehicle, said Cynthia Giles, the agency’s assistant administrator for enforcement. With 482,000 autos part of the case, the total could be $18 billion. The VW investigation involves model years 2009-2015.
“Using a defeat device in cars to evade clean air standards is illegal and a threat to public health,” said Cynthia Giles, the agency’s assistant administrator for enforcement. “EPA is committed to making sure that all automakers play by the same rules.”
Last year Ford Motor Co. was forced to lower mileage estimates and compensate more than 200,000 customers. The Dearborn, Michigan-based company sent out payments ranging from $200 to $1,050. In 2012, an investigation led to Hyundai Motor Co. and Kia Motors Corp. relabeling some of their top-selling U.S. models.
VW ‘Cooperating’
Volkswagen said in a statement it's cooperating with the investigation and unable to comment further. The EPA and the California Air Resources Board said their investigations are continuing.
The affected models include diesel-powered versions of some of VW’s most popular U.S. cars: the Beetle, the Jetta, the Golf and the Passat. The Audi A3 is also part of the investigation. As recently as July, diesel models accounted for 26 percent of VW brand sales in the U.S., according to a company news release.
In a letter to VW Friday, the EPA said the company admitted it had designed and installed software to evade pollution controls after regulators made clear they weren’t going to certify the automakers’ 2016 models.
Surprising Horsepower
Consumers haven’t yet been ordered to return to their dealers for a recall, and it’s safe to keep driving the cars, said Janet McCabe, acting assistant administrator of the agency’s Office of Air and Radiation.
It had been surprising that Volkswagen diesel models were able to get impressive horsepower output and fuel economy performance using less costly pollution control technology than employed in some other automakers' engines, said Bill Visnic, an independent auto analyst in Weirton, West Virginia.
The software workaround might have been what enabled the performance without the expected pollution controls, he said.
“You can’t have anything like this that’s intended to game the system,” Visnic said.
It would be very difficult for Volkswagen to add new pollution-control equipment to the existing engines, so the only way to fix this may be to cut the horsepower and fuel economy performance of the models to lower the pollution output once the software is eliminated, said Visnic, who has been studying engine design for two decades.
The EPA has been concerned about how well its laboratory tests reflect conditions consumers experience in the real world, amid consumer complaints. The agency announced last July it would overhaul the tests, which involve allowing computers to drive cars on a dynamometer to ensure accurate, repeatable results.
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