Volkswagen DID use defeat device to scam emissions tests in UK & Europe

German Transport Minister, Alexander Dobrindt, has revealed that Volkswagen did use their defeat device software in Europe to scam emissions test.

Yesterday, we questioned the assertion by the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT) that VW couldn’t have cheated EU emissions testing as they are independently witnessed by a government-appointed independent agency. It turns out the independent witnesses didn’t help.

German Transport Minister, Alexander Dobrindt, has today revealed that VW DID use their defeat device software on emissions tests in the EU, saying that, so far, it seems most of the manipulation was on VW Group cars with 1.6 and 2.0 litre diesel engines.

Herr Dobrindt revealed that German authorities will be testing emissions levels of other car makers to try and work out if the problem is more widespread.

In the UK, Transport Minister, Patrick McLoughlin has also issued a statement confirming the UK will also be conducting new tests. He said:

The Vehicle Certification Agency, the UK regulator, is working with vehicle manufacturers to ensure that this issue is not industry wide.
As part of this work they will re-run laboratory tests where necessary and compare them against real world driving emissions.”
We have called on the EU to conduct a Europe wide investigation into whether there is evidence that cars here have been fitted with defeat devices.

Clearly, VW has been using defeat devices in Europe, but the question still remains whether they were the only car maker doing so. BMW’s shares slipped by 10 per cent today after Auto Bild revealed a BMW X3 Xdrive 20d emitted 11 times the certified levels of NOx in real world tests.

That claim is at odds with the information from the team that did the tests that broke the scandal, when they found a diesel X5 emitted exactly what it was expected to, and BMW said it “…does not manipulate or rig any emissions tests”