Automotive News: Owners Sue General Motors Over Emissions 'Defeat Device' In Duramax Diesels, German prosecutor says is in touch with U.S. authorities on Daimler, Prosecutors investigate Bosch employees
Owners Sue General Motors Over Emissions 'Defeat Device' In Duramax Diesels
The class-action lawsuit is being handled by a firm that previously worked on Volkswagen's $10 billion settlement.
Owners of Duramax diesel-powered Chevrolet Silverado and GMC Sierra HD trucks are suing General Motors over allegations the company installed illegal "defeat devices" to pass emissions tests while allowing the engines to overpollute in real world use, according to papers filed in U.S. District Court today.
Class-action law firm Hagens Berman, who also worked on the eventual $10 billion Volkswagen Dieselgate settlement, alleges that the Duramax diesel engines in 2011-2016 Silverados and Sierras are rigged with at least three distinct devices designed to only limit emissions under a narrow range of circumstances matching those found in emissions testing. On the open road, the lawsuit claims the 705,000 affected trucks pollute at rates up to five times higher than the legal limit.
"This is a shocking discovery, and a really big deal because the NOx limits for these big trucks are four times what the limits were for the much smaller Volkswagen passenger cars and there are more of these trucks on the road," managing partner Steve Berman said in a press release. "As a result, these GM trucks likely dumped as much excess poisonous NOx emissions into our air as did the cheating Volkswagen passenger cars." read more »
German prosecutor says is in touch with U.S. authorities on Daimler
German prosecutors, who searched Daimler's offices this week as part of an investigation into diesel pollution, are talking to U.S. authorities, the Stuttgart public prosecutor's office said on Wednesday.
"We are in contact with U.S. authorities," the Stuttgart public prosecutor's office said, declining to elaborate further about the nature of potential cooperation and whether extensive searches of Daimler's offices in Germany had also been conducted at the behest of requests from U.S. regulators.
Stuttgart-based Daimler, owner of the Mercedes-Benz brand, said it was fully cooperating with authorities, and had been in touch with both German and U.S. authorities probing potential diesel emissions violations. read more »
Prosecutors investigate Bosch employees in Daimler probe, report says
German prosecutors who searched Daimler's offices this week as part of a probe into diesel pollution are also investigating employees at automotive supplier Bosch, daily Handelsblatt reported, citing the prosecutor's office.
"We are investigating Bosch employees for suspected aiding and abetting in connection with the Daimler case," the paper quoted a spokesman for the Stuttgart prosecutor's office as saying. read more »
Ford Recalls 2017 F150, Super Duty for Driver's Seat and Door Handle Problems
Ford Motor Company has issued a pair of safety compliance recalls for 2017 F150 and Super Duty, along with some trucks from previous models years and the 2017 Explorer, over a concern that the front seats could break and the doors could open in the event of an accident. read more »
Software update can fix Fiat Chrysler's U.S. diesel issue – claims FCA lawyer
Fiat Chrysler Automobiles NV believes a software update can address U.S. regulators' contention that its diesel vehicles are producing excess emissions, a lawyer for the company said at a court hearing on Wednesday.
The lawyer admitted no wrongdoing by the Italian-American automaker, however.
The Justice Department filed a civil suit on Tuesday accusing Fiat Chrysler of illegally using software to bypass emission controls in 104,000 2014-2016 diesel and labeled the software "defeat devices."
Robert Giuffra, a lawyer representing Fiat Chrysler, said at a hearing in San Francisco that regulators' concerns could be resolved with new software without a need for any new hardware.
Giuffra said the company does not concede that the 104,000 vehicles emitted excess emissions. He said there were very complicated regulations governing whether auxillary emissions control devices should have been disclosed to regulators. read more »
