Volkswagen has issued a recall of around 3,23,700 diesel vehicles in India. These include all the VW, Skoda and Audi cars involved in the diesel emissions scandal.
This announcement comes after the meeting that was held between the company executives and officials of the Department of Heavy Industries today. India's top automotive testing agency, Automotive Research Association of India (ARAI), was supposed to submit a report to check if the cars sold in India went against the Indian BSIV norms. This government-ordered probe found that the company's diesel engines were equipped with a defeat device that helped cheat emission tests.
Volkswagen diesel cars powered by the EA 189 engines were fitted with this device that masked the excess nitrogen oxide emission levels in on-road vehicles. These EA 189 engines include 1.2-litre, 1.5-litre, 1.6-litre and 2.0-litre diesel engines in India. These cars from the Volkswagen group include 1,98,500 VW cars like the Polo and Vento, 88,700 Skoda vehicles like the Octavia and Superb and 36,500 Audis including the A3 and A4.
With this recall, the manufacturer will update the related software after the technical released solution is approved by the Ministry of Heavy Industries and ARAI. Respective brands will contact the owners of the related vehicles through dealerships and carry out the required changes in a phased manner. None of the petrol cars from any of these brands are affected by this recall.
