What's the news?
The German Federal Transport Authority, the KBA, has given Volkswagen the go-ahead to begin retrofitting 2.6-million 1.6 TDI diesel engines across Europe with new equipment and revised software to allow the engines to meet current pollution emissions standards.
The rubber-stamping is of course the latest move in the byzantine Dieselgate saga which has seen Volkswagen forced to admit cheating the regulations on diesel emissions in Europe and the US, leading to a massive global recall, court cases and compensation payments.
The 1.6-litre diesel case is also slightly different to that of the 2.0-litre engines, which only needed a software change. The 1.6 also requires what's called a 'flow regulator' which is essentially an extra filter in the car's air intake to regulate the flow of air, and allow the engine to breathe a little more efficiently. Owners should start to receive letters asking them to book a date with their local dealer in the next few weeks.
In what will hopefully represent good news for Volkswagen (and SEAT, Skoda and Audi) owners, the KBA has confirmed that the fix "causes no detrimental changes to fuel consumption levels, performance data or noise emissions. The KBA had previously already affirmed this for all other models approved for the recall. After the modification, the vehicles also fulfil all statutory requirements and the duly applicable emissions standards."
Volkswagen has stated that it "is continuing to put every effort into implementing the technical solutions and will correct all vehicles affected by the NOx issue. This is being done in close consultation with the relevant authorities. The customers will incur no costs as a result of the technical measures being carried out. As part of the recall process all customers are also being offered an appropriate replacement means of transport free of charge. The vehicles affected are technically safe and roadworthy. Between now and their modification, they can continue to be used on the road without any restrictions."
However, the Dieselgate plot thickened again this week as investigators in the US discovered a second layer to the 'defeat device' used by the 3.0-litre V6 TDI diesel engine in Audi models. It was a steering wheel sensor that activated an extra layer of electronic emissions control when it detected that the engine was running but the steering was being kept static, as in laboratory conditions.