Europe, stop wasting time and take action against defeat devices! - Main contents

Member of the European Parliament and co-rapporteur of the Dieselgate Inquiry Committee Gerben-Jan Gerbrandy calls on the European ministers of transport to stop lingering with a rigorous and consistent approach against new forms of defeat devices. Next Tuesday, transport ministers will debate diesel car emissions at the Energy, Telecoms and Transport Council in Luxembourg. “It’s time for action, EU rules are massively violated. There are plenty of options to enforce these rules but national governments are not willing to act. I can see no reasons to ignore these practices”, Gerbrandy says.

New revelations

Since the hearings in the Parliament have started, there have been a few new revelations. From statements made by research institutions it appears that other car manufactures disabled emissions technology at lower ambient temperatures (e.g. below 10 degrees or 17 degrees Celsius. During the official laboratory tests, cars are only tested at temperatures between 20 and 30 degrees Celsius. Experts claim that the disabling of the emission technology is technically not necessary at lower temperatures.

Gerbrandy: “I welcome that ministers will discuss these new findings, but it is time for action. I hope that they will come with concrete measures instead of delaying it again. EU rules are crystal clear; emission technologies must work at normal temperatures. Moreover, the question is not only why car manufacturers use such emission strategies, the question is also why our authorities have not yet used the legal tools to act against them. Next week’s meeting is an opportunity to set things straight.”