The German federal government’s Transport ministry, working with the KBA motor vehicle authority, has accused Audi AG of fitting defeat devices to certain diesel engines powering the Audi A8 and A7 Sportback.
Matthias Mueller, the CEO of the Volkswagen Group, was summoned to Berlin on 1 June for an urgent meeting with the Transport minister, a spokesman told Reuters.
The V6 and V8 Euro 5 TDI engines in question are alleged to have control software which artificially reduces emissions. The cars number some 24,000 vehicles, of which around 14,000 were sold in Germany between 2010 and 2013. The remainder are said to have been delivered to buyers in other European markets.
German prosecutors raided Audi offices in March but did not state at that time what they suspected they might find evidence of.
The Transport ministry claims that cars which have been tested emit around twice the legal limit of nitrogen oxides when the steering wheel is turned more than 15 degrees.
Audi, which was given until 12 June to report back to Berlin with a comprehensive plan for a fix, moved quickly to resolve the issue, announcing a recall later on 1 June which will see affected vehicles given a software update which takes 30 minutes to download.
The 2,967cc V6 and 4,134cc V8 diesels have been fitted to a variety of vehicles other than the A7 Sportback and A8.
The Volkswagen Group’s 2,967cc V6 and 4,134cc V8 diesels have been fitted to a variety of vehicles other than the A7 Sportback and A8. Curiously, neither Volkswagen AG, the KBA nor the Transport Ministry has made any mention of this.
The Ingolstadt-based firm will be especially keen to attempt to put this issue behind it, given that a new A8 is now only weeks away from its 11 July media launch in Barcelona, with the next A7 Sportback also due to be revealed to the press within months.
