Yahoo Autos VW's Fix for Some European-Market TDIs May Actually Make Emissions Worse
The VW Group saw some small relief from its near-$15 billion settlement with the news that it wouldn't be fined in Germany, but with this scandal, there can only be so much good news. A group in Europe is now making the claim that the fix for the Audi Q5 equipped with the emissions-cheating 2.0-liter TDI actually makes NOx emissions worse.
Per a Reuters report, an Italian consumer group called Altroconsumo found that a European-spec 2.0-liter EA189 engine in an Audi Q5 emitted 25 percent more NOx after the removal of VW's defeat-device software. NOx, you'll recall, is the toxic pollutant at the center of this emissions crisis, emitted at up to 40 times the legal limit when affected TDI vehicles are driven in real-world conditions.
This diesel-powered Audi Q5 was never sold in the U.S., but it uses the same engine at the heart of the scandal here, available in a number of U.S.-spec VW Group cars.
It's very possible the EA189 will never be fixed in the U.S. due to differences in our nation's emissions regulations. That said, VW is in the process of fixing the engines in Europe, to comply with Euro 5 regulations. As such, VW's fix for 2.0-liter TDI cars in Europe only involves a software update, and no hardware changes. The software fix has been approved by Germany's automotive regulatory body, the KBA.
The European Consumer Organization said in a statement that the KBA and other agencies should "urgently re-examine the solutions to repair the affected cars and that they publish these results." The ECO also called on VW to offer some sort of compensation for European customers, who currently will not receive anything resembling the U.S. customer buyback program.
It's important to note that the Italian group seems to have only examined a single Audi Q5 TDI, with emissions tests done before and after the software fix. Still, these allegations sure seem to cast a cloud over the increasingly complex TDI solution.
