How deep does the Volkswagen emissions scandal go?
The Environmental Protection Agency has slapped Volkswagen with additional emissions-cheating charges, pulling the automaker鈥檚 luxury brands Porsche and Audi into the global scandal.
In its investigation, the EPA found that certain 2014-2016 Volkswagen, Audi, and Porsche models with 3.0-liter engines come with software designed to cheat on emissions testing, the agency said in posted Monday on its website.
The revelations raise questions about the extent of the company鈥檚 response to the scandal that broke in September after the EPA charged Volkswagen for defeating emissions regulations for four-cylinder diesel engines on 11 million vehicles worldwide 鈥� including about 500,000 in the United States.
Volkswagen chief executive officer聽Martin Winkerhorn admitted to and apologized for the use of defeat devices in four-cylinder engines in late September, but the EPA says that the company installed similar devices in its six-cylinder vehicles as well.
鈥淰W has once again failed in its obligation to comply with the law that protects clean air for all Americans,鈥� said Cynthia Giles, assistant administrator of EPA鈥檚 Office of Enforcement and Compliance Assurance, .
The latest violation notice charges聽Volkswagen with installing software that turns on pollution controls when testing begins for six-cylinder diesel engines. The program causes the cars to emit less nitrogen oxide 鈥� a smog-causing pollutant 鈥� by operating at high exhaust temperatures, according to the EPA. As soon as the first phase of the test ends, however, the cars go back to normal operation.
The allegations tie the cheating scandal to 10,000 new vehicles in the US, potentially exposing Volkswagen to more than $375 million in Clean Air Act penalties in addition to the $18 billion the company might already incur from the original diesel car violations, .
More than money, the scandal could cost Volkswagen 鈥� which 鈥渉as long enjoyed a reputation for reliable engineering, cheerful affordability, and, largely thanks to its efforts in clean diesel, sustainability,鈥� as聽the Monitor鈥檚 Schuyler Velasco reports 鈥� the confidence of consumers who are increasingly conscientious when it comes to their product choices.
鈥淭here鈥檚 an increased attention to more intangible characteristics of a product,鈥� Dutch Leonard, a professor who teaches corporate responsibility and risk management at Harvard Business School, told the Monitor. 鈥淲hen I buy a shirt, it has a particular color, it鈥檚 soft, or wrinkle-free. But now people are also paying attention to where it was made, if the workers are being exploited, and if the company is environmentally conscious or not.鈥�
The latest violations cover models including the 2014 Touareg, 2015 Porsche Cayenne, and a number of 2016 Audi models.
This report contains material from Reuters and the Associated Press.
