[volkman10]

VW Resumes Sales Of Diesel Vehicles In The U.S.

Volkswagen has revealed that it resumed selling diesel vehicles in the United States last month for the first time since the dieselgate scandal of September 2015.

the company started selling 2015 diesel vehicles outfitted with approved emissions fixes in mid-April and that they accounted for 12 per cent of the automaker’s local sales last month.

A total of 3,196 diesel vehicles found new homes last month and despite industry-wide vehicle sales dropping by 4.7 per cent in April, VW reports a 1.6 per cent jump in sales over April 2016, inevitably because of the availability of diesels.

Despite its diesel models seemingly regaining traction stateside, VW insists that it won’t introduce any new diesel models to the country and is instead focused on its electric vehicle program.

Link

[vishwas]

Fascinating story of how Volkswagen was caught and tried to defend itself in a web of lies

https://www.nytimes.com/2017/05/06/b...-trickery.html

[volkman10]

New findings after VW's solution of the emission fix. The car becomes less fuel efficient!

It revealed that while NOx emissions were almost halved from 0.639g/km pre-fix to 0.351g/km post-fix, our test car’s combined fuel economy had fallen from 50.72mpg to 47.61mpg. This means that its CO2 emissions increased from 147.3g/km to 156.9g/km, a change of 6.5%.

It is understood that the fix to the 2.0-litre diesel models is the most complex.

the 2.0-litre engine type is also subject to a growing number of case studies and reports that the fix is causing breakdowns in cars that have had it done

A report by the Volkswagen Diesel Customer Forum (VDCF) last month said owners of postfix VWs with the 2.0-litre diesel had experienced breakdowns, increased fuel consumption, reduced performance, increased exhaust smoke, excessive regeneration of diesel particulate filters (DPFs) and DPF failure.

Exhaust gas regeneration (EGR) valves, turbochargers and fuel injectors are also said to have failed and others report their cars having entered limphome mode or their engines having become noisier.

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[lamborghini]

Originally Posted by volkman10

Link

Yes, excess re-gen happening on our Laura TDi after the de-tune.

Within minutes from start up. Is there anything Indian customers facing such issues can do?

[aaggoswami]

Not sure if somebody else has posted on this or if a separate thread is required on this. Request mods to shift to a new thread if deemed necessary.

Lawsuit claims GM used at least three defeat devices to pass emission standard.

Source

Article:

General Motors Co was accused in a lawsuit on Thursday of rigging hundreds of thousands of diesel trucks with devices similar to those used by Volkswagen AG , to ensure they pass emissions tests.

The proposed class-action lawsuit covers people who own or lease more than 705,000 Chevrolet Silverado and GMC Sierra pickups fitted with "Duramax" engines from the 2011 to 2016 model years.

It said GM used at least three "defeat devices" to ensure that the trucks met federal and state emission standards, even if they generated more pollution in real-world driving. The complaint was filed in the federal court in Detroit.

..

It adds to legal problems for Detroit-based GM, which has already paid about $2.5 billion in penalties and settlements over faulty ignition switches linked to 124 deaths.

GM joins VW, which has admitted to cheating, and at least four other automakers whose diesel emissions have been scrutinized by regulators or consumers.
..

EXCESS POLLUTANTS

According to the lawsuit, "on-road" emissions testing conducted for the plaintiffs found that Duramax-engined trucks produced nitrogen oxide pollutants two to five times higher than allowed, and "many times" higher than gasoline-engined trucks.

Modifying the engines to meet emissions standards would reduce performance, horsepower and fuel economy, the 184-page complaint said.

FCA is also under scrutiny for diesel emissions.

[shashanka]

Originally Posted by aaggoswami

....Lawsuit claims GM used at least three defeat devices to pass emission standard.....

It's nice to know this. I thought the US was still busy defrocking VW & pulling it down from its self-made pedestal! But I guess this happens in a respectable 1st world country like the USA. Here in India GM was happily marketing its Tavera for years in full public glare, flouting all emission norms, till a whistle blower (or disgruntled employee perhaps?) pulled the plug & the Tavera had to be pulled out from BS-IV cities.

[sukarsan]

Originally Posted by aaggoswami

Not sure if somebody else has posted on this or if a separate thread is required on this. Request mods to shift to a new thread if deemed necessary.

Lawsuit claims GM used at least three defeat devices to pass emission standard.

Thanks for the headsup.

Took some time off work yesterday to look into this. I was surprised at the source of this lawsuit. Seems to be a couple of individuals. They have purchased PEMS(Portable emission measurement systems) and checked for emission measurement at various temperatures. Then hired lawyers to prepare a class action lawsuit.

hagens-berman-2017-05-25gmemissionsclassactioncomplaint.pdf

The core of the argument is from pages 35 to 40 in the attached lawsuit. Its an interesting read for an engine guy like me. The argument here is not like the VW case which was very obvious deception at an extraordinary level. The emission levels are higher during real world driving only by 1.5 to 5.5 times compared to the legal limit. This is fairly common.

The question raised seems to be that of how the legal requirements are interpreted with respect to Diesel Particulate filter regeneration. All engines with DPF have to 'burn' the soot collected and need some emission strategy to achieve this. GM seems to turn off EGR and reduce SCR dosing after running in the highway for sometime to 'burn' the soot. I include burn in quotes as some engines literally burn the soot and others use catalytic conversion, but the purpose is the same.

I dont quite think that there is any case for criminal charges like in the case of VW. At max this will end up in the courts for a few years, tarnish the reputation of GM and diesel engine and make the lawyers representing GM rich.

The lawsuit also takes the blame to Bosch which will fight tooth and nail to ensure that this case goes nowhere.

[shashanka]

No law-suits in emissions/environment related cases get anywhere - fines, out-of court settlements, some get rich, some a little poorer. Otherwise VW should have been barred from selling cars in lucrative markets - instead it is back selling cars in the US again. And in India - the less said the better.

One thing is certain - it is manna from heaven for the lawyer fraternity.

[sandeepmohan]

On complex emission cheat code found on VW ecu's and Fiat joins the club.

https://arstechnica.com/cars/2017/05...-new-research/

[volkman10]

European Commission begins verifying emissions in traffic( real time tests).

If cars that are checked will not pass emissions tests, the car manufacturers and importers will be fined with up to 30,000 euros.

The new rules are part of a project to revise the legal framework relating to type-approval of motor vehicles and trailers at the EU level, Directive EC 46 in 2007. The project is aimed at detecting possible discrepancies between actual emissions of particulate matter and the amounts declared by the manufacturers

Link

[volkman10]

Germany accuses Audi of cheating on emissions tests.

Audi also installed emission-cheating software in some 24,000 luxury models, according to German Transport Minister Alexander Dobrindt. His admission follows ructions at Volkswagen over health-damaging exhaust gases.

the luxury carmaker had been told to recall its A8 and A7 models fitted with V6 and V8 diesel motors and sold between 2009 and 2013 in Europe.

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[Enobarbus]

Originally Posted by volkman10

Germany accuses Audi of cheating on emissions tests.

Link

So many great brands indulging in this type of cheating. Doesn't bode well for the health of the planet.
More than anything, I am worried about the situation in India. If they can do it in Germany and Japan, I guess they can do it very easily in India.
I wonder why only one is caught in India until now.

[volkman10]

Originally Posted by volkman10

Germany accuses Audi of cheating on emissions tests.[/url]

Audi responds by recalls of A7 and A8 in Europe to fix NOx emissions.

Audi is recalling around 24,000 A7 and A8 models because NOx emissions are too high.

But words the recall differently,

Within the context of a proactive, comprehensive investigation of transmission software in various model versions, Audi has detected anomalies in the NOx emissions in certain driving conditions of approximately 24,000 cars of the A7 and A8 model series certified according to the EU5 emission standard. Their NOx emissions exceed the limit by a factor of up to two but will be corrected by new transmission software

Link

[volkman10]

VAG's next sub-brand Porsche accused of emission fraud.

Porsche Accused of Using Defeat Device Triggered by Steering Angle - Porsche denies the allegation!

Germany’s KBA transportation authority is looking into whether Porsche uses a defeat device to detect when an emissions test is being performed. The report alleges software looks for specific steering inputs that signal when a test is under way. Porsche denies the claims made in the report.

The alleged software is said to be capable of sensing when the car is on a test bed via the steering movements. If the steering wheel is turned more than 15 degrees, more than would be used on a dynamometer, the software would allow emissions to increase

lLink

[srivatsahg]

Can anyone explain to me, how a steering angle is related to rise in exhaust?
"Audi exhale around twice the permitted limit of nitrogen oxides in real world conditions when the steering is turned more than 15 degrees"