EPA, CARB approve fixes for 24,000 more VW 3.0-liter diesels
This builds on an earlier approval from October.
Back in October, the EPA and the California Air Resources Board (CARB) approved fixes for 38,000 Volkswagen Group diesel vehicles, but that only covered two SUV models and left many passenger cars with the same engines in limbo. Now, there's some more closure.
The EPA and CARB have now approved fixes for 24,000 additional Volkswagen Group vehicles equipped with a 3.0-liter diesel V6, Reuters reports. The 2014-2016 Audi A6, A7, A8, A8L and Q5 comprise the list of new additions to vehicles with approved fixes.
Cleaning up Volkswagen's diesel malfeasance has required a mixture of hardware and software fixes, depending on the vehicle in question. This new batch of 24,000 cars will reportedly require both hardware and software adjustments.
Volkswagen is one step closer to being done with this, and I'm one step closer to never having to write "Dieselgate" again.
The first round of 3.0-liter diesel V6 fixes were approved in October, covering some 38,000 examples of the 2013-2016 Porsche Cayenne and Volkswagen Touareg, in addition to the 2013-2015 Audi Q7. There are still approximately 20,000 VW Group diesels awaiting approval for fixes.
Owners who opt to have their vehicles fixed, which would bring them into compliance with modern diesel emissions regulations, will still receive a cash payout, but it will be far less than what VW would have paid to buy each vehicle back. Owners are allowed to skip the fix, but they won't receive anything.
If regulators had not approved any of VW Group's proposed fixes, the automaker would have been compelled to offer buybacks for each of the aforementioned vehicles, which would have added billions of dollars to VW's already-costly Dieselgate cleanup. Thus far, that tab is hovering around the $25 billion mark.
Volkswagen did not immediately return a request for comment, but it told Reuters it was happy with the new approval.
Volkswagen Group ended up in this mess two years ago, after it admitted to cheating its way to success on emissions tests worldwide. The vehicles were programmed to curtail emissions in testing environments, only to pollute well in excess of legal limits once out on the open road. Part of the company's cleanup effort has involved promoting the use of alternative propulsion -- namely, battery-electric powertrains.
