VW diesels in India could have emission problems too: ARAI

The diesel emission crisis surrounding German carmaker Volkswagen is likely to have a fallout in India too. Testing agency ARAI or Automotive Research Association of India says it has found substantial discrepancies between on-road and laboratory emission levels on some Volkswagen group diesel cars.

"We have found a substantial difference in the emission between on-road and the laboratory measurements. We have issued a notice to the Volkswagen Group and are seeking a technical explanation from them. The variation in emission levels was found on the Volkswagen Jetta, Skoda Octavia, Audi A6 and Audi A4,” Rashmi Urdhwareshe, director, Automotive Research Association of India (ARAI) told Autocar India. The above cars are powered by the 2.0-litre EA 189 diesel engine. 

Volkswagen was caught evading vehicle emission tests in the United States in September and the German car maker admitted that as many as 11 million vehicles across the globe could be affected. Following the outbreak of the news, ARAI said that it would investigate VW India’s cars with special emission monitoring equipment that could conduct tests on the road, and that it would then correlate the findings with laboratory results.

Meanwhile, Volkswagen India has denied receipt of a show-cause notice from the government. "Volkswagen Group India has not received any show-cause notice from the Government of India yet. Volkswagen Group India is also not aware, if ARAI has presented any analysis to the Government of India," the carmaker said in an official statement.

The carmaker, which has been evaluating the impact of the worldwide emission scandal on its cars in the country, had said last week that it would present the results from its evaluations by November-end.

Moreover, the Volkswagen Group admitted on Tuesday that up to 8,00,000 vehicles in Europe, including petrol cars, could have had their CO₂ levels as well as fuel efficiency ratings wrongly certified. Reports suggest that the latest scandal affects Audi, Seat, Skoda and VW cars with "small" engines.

NISHANT PAREKH