EPA says VW cheating software may be on more vehicles

The statement says the agencies will investigate and take appropriate action on the software, which the regulators claim allowed the six-cylinder diesels to emit fewer pollutants during tests than in real-world driving.

2 issued a second notice of violation of the U.S. Clean Air Act to Volkswagen AG, Audi AG, Volkswagen Group of America, Inc., Porsche AG and Porsche Cars North America, accusing those five companies of disguising the actual emissions of at least 10,000 SUVs and cars equipped with 3.0-liter V-6 diesel engines.

Authorities in California and Washington are calling for a recall of Volkswagen diesel cars.

During the meeting, the automaker admitted that all Volkswagen and Audi vehicles with 3.0-liter engines from model years 2009 to 2016 were equipped with the auxiliary equipment and that it failed to disclose this information to the US government as required.

Volkswagen is struggling to cope with the biggest crisis of its history over its admission in September that it had fitted more than 11 million vehicles worldwide with devices created to cheat pollution tests.

USA regulators continue to tell owners of all the affected cars they are safe to drive, even as they emit nitrogen oxide, a contributor to smog and respiratory problems, in amounts that exceed EPA standards – up to nine times above accepted levels in the six-cylinder engines and up to 40 times in the four-cylinders.

The maximum fine the EPA could hand out for each vehicle with a defeat device is $37,500, meaning Volkswagen could face a fine of about $18.5 billion with the additional vehicles caught up in the latest round of testing. Earlier, it also said it would cut its investments next year.

Ratings agencies have slashed its credit rating, with Moody’s saying on November 4 that the company’s reputation and earnings were at risk from the growing scandal. “They also suggest serious internal control and governance issues, which may be more widely spread than believed initially”.