Former Audi boss charged in VW dieselgate scandal

German authorities have charged the former boss of Audi with fraud as part of an investigation into the VW emissions-cheating scandal.

Rupert Stadler is also accused of false certification and criminal advertising practices.

Prosecutors claim he knew that hundreds of thousands of Audi, Porsche and VW cars contained software designed to cheat pollution tests, yet turned a blind eye. read more »

Audi's Dieselgate Involvement Deeper Than Previously Thought

The fallout continues.

Although it’s been nearly four years since the Volkswagen Dieselgate scandal broke, there’s still more information coming out that continues to amaze. This time, it turns out Audi played a far more significant role in the scandal than anyone previously thought. The new information comes to light courtesy of a joint investigation by the German newspaper Handelsblatt and Bavarian broadcaster Bayerische Rundfunk. The New York Times then covered the German reports. It all dates back to 2007 and 2008 when Audi engineers realized the new generation of clean diesel engines they had developed would not meet stricter regulations in the US, a key market. "We won’t make it without a few dirty tricks,” one Audi engineer wrote to colleagues in an email. read more »

Car companies’ surprising deal with California on environmental rules, explained

Why four car companies worked with California to set tougher standards for themselves.

The usual script of industry resisting environmental regulations flipped last week in California: Major auto industry players reached a surprise deal with state officials to enact tougher fuel economy rules, circumventing the federal Environmental Protection Agency that is working to weaken them.

First reported by the Washington Post, the California Air Resources Board (CARB) alongside Ford Motor Company, Volkswagen AG, Honda Motor Company Ltd., and BMW of North America agreed to increase vehicle fuel economy of their fleets 3.7 percent year over year between model year 2022 and model year 2026.

But the California deal brings up an interesting question: Why did major car companies deliberately go out of their way to negotiate more stringent rules for themselves when the Trump administration was trying to make things easier for them? read more »