Volkswagen Scandal Rocks Europe
The Volkswagen emissions scandal risks affecting not only the American, but also the European markets.
Roxana Vasile, 25.09.2015, 13:29
Fears of the resounding scandal revolving around the German giant carmaker Volkswagen having a domino effect on European markets pervade the continent. The European Commission this week urged all EU Member States to establish the number of diesel engines suspected of cheating pollution tests. Volkswagen admitted recently that a batch of several millions of cars shipped to the US came with software installed able to fool authorities charged with conducting car pollution tests. According to the latest data, such cars have been sold across the European Union as well.
Brussels has expressed zero tolerance regarding fraud attempts and the enforcement of laws on car emissions. The Commission has urged national authorities to look into the implications for vehicles sold in Europe and ensure that EU pollutant emission standards are scrupulously respected. The relevant authorities in Romania are due to ascertain whether these pollution safety limits are met over the coming days. For the time being, Romania was not flagged in connection with any additional pollution tests for Volkswagen cars, Cristian Bucur, Technical Director with the Romanian Car Registry Authority told Radio Romania. He told us how pollution tests were rigged in the US and the extent of controls to be carried out in Romania.
Cristian Bucur: “For the time being there wont be any tests here, unless we receive a notification in this respect from Germany, the country where the Group originally greenlighted the homologation procedures. The United States on the other hand uses the self-certification principle for the car industry, according to which in order to obtain the trading license, any carmaker need only issue a statement attesting its product passes all car safety regulations in force, including pollution standards.
For the time being, the Groups representative office in Romania cannot estimate the number of cars fitted with software designed to cheat emission tests. Even so, Romanians are not too willing to give up their passion for German car models. Official statistics in Romania estimate some 700,000 Volkswagen cars are licensed in Romania, and 2 in 3 cars run on diesel fuel. Last year Romanians bought over 6,500 new Volkswagen cars and by 10 times more second-hand vehicles manufactured by the German automaker. The best-selling Volkswagen model is Golf, running on diesel.
Meanwhile, the rigged car emissions scandal rocks the German political and business circles, in what specialists believe to be the worst crisis in the 78-year-old history of the Group, which risks becoming a serious threat to Europes best-performing economy.
