Volkswagen India has issued a recall for cars under the Volkswagen, Skoda and Audi brands that are equipped with the EA 189 diesel engines.
Volkswagen got itself into an ugly mess this year with the Dieselgate scandal that started out in the US and only triggered more similar investigations against the carmaker in other countries. India’s auto governing body ARAI too launched its independent investigation and based on the final results, the company has issued a voluntary recall involving 3,23,700 units on its diesel vehicles in India under brands Volkswagen, Skoda and Audi.
The recall includes 1,98,500 cars from Volkswagen, 88,700 cars from Skoda and 36,500 cars from Audi that include various models and are equipped with the EA 189 engines which include the 1.2-litre, 1.5-litre, 1.6-litre and 2.0-litre diesel mills. The company started domestic operations in 2008. The carmaker stated that it has presented its observations, findings and outlines of possible solutions on the EA 189 diesel engines to the Indian government’s Ministry of Heavy Industries and ARAI.
Once approved, Volkswagen will be carrying out necessary actions in a stepwise manner and will be implemented on the affected cars at no extra cost to customers. The software update does not affect the handling, technical safety or roadworthiness of the cars, Volkswagen said in its statement. Furthermore, customers affected by the recall will be informed directly by the company through the respective brands.
In the US, it was found that the Volkswagen cars were fitted with a cheat device that would manipulate the emission levels in the lab while the figures would be different out in the real world emitting higher NOx levels. Unlike the US, where customers received a $1000 (Rs. 66,000/-) compensation in addition to their vehicles being recalled, the Indian customers have not been given any such kind of benefit.
