SEAT vehicles with ‘pollution cheating software’

WASHINGTON, September 29 (Xinhua) – US lawmakers on Tuesday requested documents from Volkswagen and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency regarding the company’s illegal software used to circumvent emissions test for certain models of diesel engine passenger vehicles.

Volkswagen’s commercial vehicles division says 1.8 million of its vehicles are among those affected by the emissions-rigging scandal.

Around 11m diesel engine cars globally are fitted with the software, which reduces carbon emissions from the vehicles when under test conditions to within standards.

Volkswagen had subsequently announced that there were about 11 million or 1.1 crore cars globally that have been affected by this emissions cheating software.

VW’s upmarket subsidiary Audi and its Czech arm Skoda have admitted that more than three million of their vehicles are fitted with the suspect devices.

The figure includes 508,276 Volkswagens, 393,450 Audis, 76,773 Seats, 131,569 Skodas and 79,838 commercial vehicles.

VW has said it will present its technical solutions to the relevant authorities in October. It is reported that when running normally, the cars emit up to 40 times the pollution limit.

Newly appointed Chief Executive Matthias Mueller said Volkswagen would issue a factory recall “in the next few days” to refit diesel vehicles that contain the software in question. “All of the group brands affected will set up national websites to update customers on developments”.

The situation that Volkswagen Group is going through is now affecting the integrity and consumer trust of all their sister companies.

The cars will be refitted to remove the software, though the company didn’t provide details on how the fix will allow the cars to conform to emissions standards or affect performance and mileage. “Owners of these vehicles will be informed in the coming weeks and months”.