A Supreme Court adviser called the software used by the carmaker illegal and unjustifiable, while his job is to protect the engine.
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Volkswagen and emissions – a connection that has connected many of us to the Dieselgate case since 2015, which cost the group huge finances, damaged its reputation and at the same time accelerated its transition to electric emission-free mobility. At the same time, we probably all considered the case with software influencing car emissions from the VW Group closed, but perhaps it has not yet definitively ended.
Although the German concern has long since ceased its original practices and today is trying to be greener than many of us would probably like, new suspicions still appear from time to time. And with one of them was to come an adviser to the EU Supreme Court, who called the so-called “temperature window” software illegal.
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What is it all about? The case was brought to the attention of Austrian customers and concerns software that controls the function of the valve that controls the exhaust gas recirculation of the engine. Under certain circumstances, when outside temperatures are between 15 and 33 ° C and the altitude is 1,000 meters, the software closes the valve. This reduces recirculation and the car emits more NOx. However, Austrian consumers claim that this is a prohibited handling device for which they should be compensated.
However, according to the Volkswagen Group, the main task of the software is to prevent the possibility of sudden and immediate engine damage, according to the Automotive News Europe website, which pointed out the case.
However, Athanasios Rantos, Advocate General of the Court of Justice of the EU (CJEU), noted in his legal opinion that a court ruled last December that emissions management software was illegal even when it helped prevent aging or engine blockage, as launches Automotive News Europe.
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In addition, Rantos adds that the “temperature window” is not representative of the actual driving conditions in Austria and neighboring Germany, as the average temperature was significantly below 15 ° C. In addition, vehicles would often have to travel at an altitude of over 1,000 meters. In his opinion, the software is manipulative and its role in protecting engine components is said to be no excuse.
If the Advocate General’s finding were upheld by the EU Court of Justice (CJEU), it would be another blow to VW. Although the group is not currently under investigation, the CJEU is not even obliged to follow the opinion of its advisers or the Advocate General, but it usually does. In other words – the group is not yet under investigation, but this could change very easily and quickly in the future.
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