The recall affects the entire Volkswagen India lineup including the 20,000 diesel made in India cars and also diesel engines that were imported in the country.
Volkswagen India will soon issue a voluntary recall including one lakh diesel cars in the country before 8th November. As you may have guessed it, the recall is related to the ‘dieselgate’ emissions cheating scandal that absorbed the brand in the US and set off independent inquiries by other countries. The automaker’s decision comes after receiving an unsatisfactory report from the Automotive Research Association of India (ARAI) on compliance with the Indian emission norms.
The recall will affect the 1.5-litre Polo GT TDI, 1.5-litre Polo Cross TDI, 1.5-litre Vento TDI, 2.0-litre Jetta, 2.0-litre Passat and will include 20,000 units of India-made diesel cars. In addition, the recall will also include cars with imported diesel engines as well as Indian manufactured engines that started production at the Chakan facility in January this year. Possibilities are cars from Audi and Skoda could also be recalled under the exercise.
ARAI is said to have communicated to Volkswagen that its diesel engines bypass the Indian emission norms (BS IV). However, the research body is investigating if the German auto giant used defeat devices on its vehicles in India as well. Volkswagen acknowledged of the investigations underway regarding EA 189 engines in India as well as in Germany and stated to be waiting for the results from the organisation. ARAI is yet to file an official report regarding the same.
One of the biggest car makers across the globe, Volkswagen’s diesel emissions scandal came to light earlier this year in the US, after which the company accepted to have fitted defeat devices to evade emission norms on 11 million cars globally. The issue caused the company to file its first quarterly loss in the last 15 years and forced CEO Martin Winterkorn to resign. The automaker recently conveyed in a statement that the fixes on the affected vehicles globally will commence in January next year.
Source – CNBC TV18