Europe was warned that car makers were rigging emissions tests four years ago
BRITAIN and other European nations were warned four years ago that car manufacturers were using emissions-rigging technology to fake diesel tests.
In 2011 a group of scientists representing EU member states found evidence of the use of “defeat devices” – the technology through which Volkswagen skewed exhaust readings.
It took another two years for the European Commission’s Joint Research Centre (JCR) to publicise its findings, even though the devices had been illegal in Europe since 2007.
The news emerged as research seen by The Daily Telegraph predicted that 97.5 per cent of new diesel engines would fall foul of retests in Britain.
Britain’s knowledge that tests were being rigged was further confirmed in European research papers published by the Cabinet Office in 2013.
The report concluded that regulators should subject cars to real-world conditions because labs “may enable the use of defeat devices”. In other developments yesterday: Germany’s transport minister disclosed that Volkswagen rigged emission tests on about 2.8 million diesel vehicles in the country, nearly six times as many as it has admitted to falsifying in the United States. Many of those vehicles may now be on British roads.
The US environmental regulator followed the Department for Transport’s example by announcing plans to put all vehicle manufacturers through more rigorous testing.
Volkswagen’s board appointed Matthias Müller, the head of Porsche, as its new chief executive.
VW was plunged into crisis last Friday when US regulators found its diesel engines were emitting up to 40 times the amount of nitrogen oxides than standards allow.
Campaigners reacted angrily to the EU admission that the JCR had already recommended action.
One of the papers circulated by the Cabinet Office said fresh measures to eliminate “defeat devices” should be enforced. It added: “This has a major
impact on concentrations of NO2, ozone and secondary particles across Europe, generating negative publicity and reputational damage for vehicle manufacturers.”
Yesterday the EU said it started work in 2011 on research into “differences between lab tests and emissions”.
An official added: “Did we know that defeat devices exist? Yes, we banned them. Were we aware that they might have been used in the EU system? No… we banned them, and future tests will be more efficient in ensuring they will not be used.”
Experts said the EU’s disclosure was proof that the VW scam was not new. Peter De Nayer, a former AA inspector, said: “There have long been rumours that some manufacturers switch off certain electrical systems on test cars, such as those that control the airbags, to reduce the load on the engine.”
Greenpeace complained that delays in clamping down on the devices were because the motor industry spent £13.6 million lobbying Brussels in 2014. Christofer Fjellner, a Swedish parliamentarian, also said it was unacceptable for Brussels to pass the blame entirely to member states.
Officials from national transport ministries and the commission will discuss the issue on Oct 6.
Meanwhile, research by Emissions Analytics, a data analysis company, found only five of 200 diesel cars designed to meet “Euro 6” rules – cleaner air regulations brought in this month – were likely to pass the retests ordered by the Department for Transport.
Nick Molden, of Emissions Analytics, told The Daily Telegraph: “The worst we’ve seen is 20 times over.”