VW diesel scandal spreads to other automakers

The automakers aren’t accused of direct cheating like Volkswagen, but apparently designed vehicles that perform to higher standards in the lab than in road tests.

According to data obtained by the Guardian, Mercedes-Benz, Honda, Mazda and Mitsubishi are now on the growing list of automakers whose diesel cars pollute the air far beyond the current regulatory limits set in Europe and the UK. Thiruvengadam said that he would already be happy if cars are releasing only five times to six times the permitted levels, but only in extreme conditions.

To be clear, The Guardian does clarify, “There is no evidence of illegal activity, such as the “defeat devices” used by Volkswagen”. Mercedes-Benz is however disagreeing with this finding.

“Since real-world driving conditions do not generally reflect those in the laboratory, the consumption figures may differ from the standardized figures”, a Mercedes-Benz spokesperson told the Guardian.

The company has admitted to fitting the diesel vehicles with software that turns on emission controls when the auto is being tested and then turns off when it is on the road.

‘For NOx, [diesel] cars are on average four times over the legal limit, because of the lenient nature of the test cycle in the European Union, ‘ he said. A spokesman for Honda said, “Honda tests vehicles in accordance with European legislation”.

Mazda: “In compliance with the law, Mazda works hard to ensure that every petrol and diesel engine it makes fully complies with the regulations”.

What’s worse is that in this case, they did so legally: The testing procedure in Europe was structured in such a way that NOx emissions from the cars in the lab were found to be acceptable, while on the road, they were pumping out much more.

Still, if practically all cars (another Guardian report last week claimed a host of other carmakers emit more pollution than seen in tests) pollute the environment significantly more than manufacturers admit, something probably needs to change. It is believed that NOx pollution causes thousands of premature deaths and billions of dollars in health costs.