Porsche recalls 22,000 vehicles over allegations of using a “defeat device”

Some two years on since VW’s use of the so-called “defeat devices” hit the news, several other automakers have been accused of doing the same thing.

Authorities worldwide have been investigating automakers since the breaking of the scandal. Germany has called for Porsche vehicles – who are a part of the VW Group – to be recalled over concerns they are also fitted with suspicious software.

Once again, we ask the burning question: when will this ever end?

What vehicles are affected?

The German government has recently ordered Porsche to recall thousands of the 3.0-litre Cayenne sport-utility and Macan S diesel vehicles over suspicions that both models may be fitted with so-called “defeat devices”. We assume the software used will be the same or similar to that used for the ongoing VW scandal, which has allowed the automaker to show lower emissions results during testing in the laboratory, but pollute much more in real-world driving conditions.

There are suspicions that VW’s Touareg SUV has the same “defeat device” installed as well.

Government intervention

Germany’s transport minister, Alexander Dobrindt, felt the pressure to take action on the crisis as complaints sought to force Germany to ban all diesel vehicles in a bid to decrease air pollution.

As a result of the pressure, Mr Dobrindt has taken an unsympathetic approach against Porsche. The transport minister forced the VW Group to recall 22,000 of the SUVs sold in Europe. Around 7,500 of the reportedly affected vehicles are in Germany.

Porsche to cooperate

Porsche confirmed they will take “full responsibility toward the customer” and will cooperate closely with the authorities when they informed authorities of engine irregularities.

Chancellor Angela Merkel’s government is thought to have abstained from setting a deadline for ending the use of combustion engines in vehicles. However, it’s clear that Mrs Merkel is facing considerable pressure to show evidence that they’re taking action against cheating automakers.

There are concerns over how close the German government is with their home-grown automakers like VW. Environment minister Barbara Hendricks reportedly stated:

“…the government has too cosy of a relationship with automakers.”

Daimler AG’s Mercedes-Benz announced on 18^th July 2017 that they’ll be voluntarily recalling 3 million diesel vehicles in Europe. On 21^st July 2017, VW’s Audi also announced that they’ll service an additional 850,000 vehicles.