Harley-Davidson Super-Tuned Itself Out of $15 Million
The most American of motorcycle manufacturers has agreed to pay a $15 million settlement after the Environmental Protection Agency accused it of selling illegal aftermarket tuning kits.
The company’s “Screamin’ Eagle” super tuners, sold since 2008, cause motorcycles to emit excessive amounts of air pollution, the EPA claims.
Harley-Davidson has sold about 340,000 of the kits. As part of the settlement, the company will take the kits off the market, and destroy all those it has in stock. While the federal government says the company violated the Clean Air Act, Harley-Davidson disagrees.
According to the New York Times, the company claims the kits are meant for track use only. In its view, the settlement is “a good-faith compromise with the E.P.A. on areas of law we interpret differently, particularly E.P.A.’s assertion that it is illegal for anyone to modify a certified vehicle even if it will be used solely for off-road/closed-course competition.”
Most of the tuners went into road-going bikes, the EPA says. The tuning kits boost horsepower, but also increase nitrogen oxide emissions beyond allowable limits. Besides the civil fines, the company must pay $3 million towards environmental initiatives — similar to the agreement hammered out with Volkswagen.
The company was also dinged for selling 12,600 motorcycles not covered by an EPA certification. Because Harley-Davidson is a big player, the EPA chose to make an example of it.
“Given Harley-Davidson’s prominence in the industry, this is a very significant step toward our goal of stopping the sale of illegal aftermarket defeat devices that cause harmful pollution on our roads and in our communities,” said Assistant Attorney General John C. Cruden, head of the Justice Department’s Environment and Natural Resources Division, in an EPA release.
“Anyone else who manufactures, sells, or installs these types of illegal products should take heed of Harley-Davidson’s corrective actions and immediately stop violating the law.”
[Image: Richard Ricciardi/ Flickr]
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The real goal here is to hold up a $3 million cheque to the cheering masses, using noisy motorcycles as the most convenient scapegoat. Let's see how many are cheering when the EPA decides to ban gas lawnmowers, fishing boats, or morning commutes exceeding 10 miles... all of which are bigger polluters than a mildly-modified motorcycle. Big Government is a great idea as long as it only affects other people.
All those supertuning kits to give the hogs sufficient oomph to haul their lardass riders around. Stock bike doesn't have enough power to do so. Come to think of it, this could be a federal conspiracy to keep annoying tattooed fat people off the road, making room for more skinny Prius drivers who support the present regime.