Switzerland Suspends Sales of Volkswagen Diesel Vehicles

Last Friday, the EPA issued a citation to Volkswagen for equipping almost 500,000 diesel-powered cars sold since 2009 with software that can detect when the vehicle is undergoing federal testing for smog-forming emissions.

VW, which has seen its stock plummet since the scandal broke, has set aside more than $7 billion to remedy the problems with its cars.

The agency is notifying “all automakers that we are stepping up” oversight, said Janet McCabe, acting assistant administrator for the EPA’s Office of Air and Radiation.

The German industrial titan sparked global outrage when it admitted that 11 million of its diesel cars, including 2.8 million in Germany, are fitted with so-called defeat devices that activate pollution controls during tests but covertly turn them off when the auto is being driven.

Matthias Mueller, the head of VW’s Porsche unit, replaces former long-time chief executive Martin Winterkorn who quit earlier this week soon after the scandal involving diesel cars unfolded.

Grundler said EPA has the money and staff to expand its emission testing.

Bahr is now one of the growing number of consumers suing Volkswagen for using software to cheat emission tests. “It’s imperative that this kind of thing can never happen again at Volkswagen which is why the group is going to enforce even stricter standards of compliance and governance”. European officials called for a EU-wide investigation over the deception, South Korea said it would recall Volkswagens, the company faces fines and class-action lawsuits around the world, and Norway announced Friday that its economic-crimes unit was investigating the fraud.

The software at the center of Volkswagen’s emissions scandal in the U.S. was built into the automaker’s cars in Europe as well, though it isn’t yet clear if it helped cheat tests as it did in the United States, Germany said Thursday.

In a two-page letter that begins “Dear Manufacturer”, the California Air Resources Board said it is immediately implementing new testing protocols for tailpipe emissions.

Authorities told Reuters they planned to withdraw approval of affected models, which as well as Volkswagen cars include Audi, Seat, and Skoda cars, until their status had been clarified.

VW spokesman Jeannine Ginivan said the company is still working on getting USA approval for the new Passat.