Volkswagen Diesels Are Setting All The Wrong Records
Brian O Sutter
Recalls
It’s been an incredible couple of years when it comes to automobile recalls. Whether it’s ignition switches, airbags, or gas tanks set so far back that they could rupture and ignite in a collision, the overall number of recalls in 2014 and 2015 has been staggering, and in both years the total is double the third place figure. However, now that Volkswagen has admitted it deceived emissions tests with its diesel engine cars, the German automaker could be setting a few new records all on its own.Why Did They Bother?
Diesel engines have a reputation for getting noticeably more miles per gallon than gasoline engines, and although they’re also usually more durable, the drawback is that they aren’t as fast or responsive. Diesel engines in personal cars never really took off in the United States until very recently, and it’s only because companies like Volkswagen successfully marketed diesel engines as being environmentally friendly since they can run on renewable biofuel and because more miles per gallon means fewer pollutants per mile.
However, that last assertion turns out to have been a very deliberate lie. For years, Volkswagen diesel engines have been deceiving government emissions testers thanks to a software program which can detect when the vehicle is undergoing a test. While under test conditions, the computer will turn on the nitrogen oxide trap in the exhaust system, which traps a pollutant which can cause bronchitis and emphysema and which is also a leading cause of acid rain.
Unfortunately, this pollutant trap uses a significant amount of energy, energy which the engine could otherwise spend on mileage and overall performance. As such, the software secretly turns off the traps during normal operation, an act which provides buyers with much better mileage than what the official numbers claimed and with a nitrogen oxide pollution rate which is up to 38 times the lawful limit for its class. For instance, a diesel Volkswagen Passat emits around as much nitrogen oxide as a medium-duty truck, and both Jetta and Golf pollution levels are best described in terms of 18-wheelers.
So What’s An Owner To Do?
The very first thing the EPA has done is order Volkswagen to recall the affected vehicles and refit them so that they comply with emissions standards and so they can’t lie to testers ever again. However, this is likely only the first in a long line of fees and penalties which Volkswagen will face for cheating both the government and its customers for years. On top of that, the US market for personal diesel engines is still small potatoes compared to number of diesels sold in Europe. Whatever Volkswagen may have to face here in America, it’s certain to be nothing more than a pale imitation of what Germany and other EU nations will do to the company.
But Volkswagen’s financial woes won’t be limited to fines for noncompliance and criminal penalties for committing fraud on a massive scale. The car owner must also make a decision on whether or not to perform the recall, because to bring the cars in line with emissions standards they have to drop a significant number of those bonus miles per gallon. Even if the environment is at stake, a good mpg rate is a hard thing to let go of. As such, customers may need a financial incentive to perform the recall, and the government certainly isn’t going to foot the bill.
On top of that, Volkswagen is also vulnerable to personal and class action lawsuits from car owners regardless of whether or not they perform this repair. After all, they have knowingly and deliberately sold defective goods which don’t live up to the statistics they published, and that’s grounds for a serious class-action personal injury case.
If you own an affected Volkswagen diesel and you live in the southwest of Florida, particularly around Port Charlotte or Fort Meyers, you should contact All Injuries Law Firm for a free case review. Volkswagen has lied and conned millions of people worldwide, and you deserve a fair settlement along with everybody else.