German Automakers 'Rearrange' Staff After Newest Diesel-related Scandal, Audi Employees See Homes Raided

Matt Posky
by Matt Posky
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german automakers rearrange staff after newest diesel related scandal audi

Daimler AG and BMW group suspended or moved several employees linked to a group that was commissioned for research that involved exposing monkeys and humans to potentially harmful gases. While the nature of these tests may not be extraordinary or illegal, the public response has been one of outrage.

Volkswagen suspended chief lobbyist Thomas Steg earlier this week for similar reasons, but the other automakers have now followed suit in the hopes of quelling public anger. The automakers haven’t kept silent on the matter, either. High-ranking executives have called the research repugnant, suggesting that the ethics employed by the European Research Group on Environment and Health in the Transport Sector (EUGT) were unacceptable.

BMW said it will remove its representative on the EUGT’s management board from his current functions, pending an investigation into EUGT’s research by the automaker’s legal team. Daimler claimed it would suspend at least one employee linked to the scandal while an externally hired law firm investigates the diesel-related testing. Neither company confirmed the names of the employees.

Meanwhile, German prosecutors raided the homes of several Audi staff members (both current and former) in connection to VW Group’s earlier emissions-cheating scandal. The “official visits” took place on Wednesday at roughly the same time the Stuttgart prosecutor’s office said two employees from Robert Bosch were under investigation on suspicion of fraud. That case ties back to another probe, which aims to uncover if Fiat Chrysler Automobiles used hidden software to allow excessive diesel emissions on 3.0-liter diesel versions of the Jeep Grand Cherokee and Ram 1500.

As a major auto parts supplier, Bosch has previously been accused of creating the software that allowed Volkswagen to skirt diesel emission testing and regulations. The company has supported the ongoing investigations, cooperating fully with the responsible authorities.

Matt Posky
Matt Posky

Consumer advocate tracking industry trends, regulation, and the bitter-sweet nature of modern automotive tech. Research focused and gut driven.

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  • TW5 TW5 on Feb 01, 2018

    The only 100% guaranteed result of implementing new regulations: People will go to jail

    • JD-Shifty JD-Shifty on Feb 03, 2018

      That's the most ridiculous thing I've seen typed today. "We had to cheat".derp. Diesel should be dead in 1st world countries except for heavy freight

  • AtoB AtoB on Feb 04, 2018

    "While the nature of these tests may not be extraordinary or illegal, the public response has been one of outrage." This reminds me a bit of the horrible Heath/Tulane Marijuana Study but without the outrage.

  • Ernesto Perez There's a line in the movie Armageddon where Bruce Willis says " is this the best idea NASA came up with?". Don't quote me. I'm asking is this the best idea NY came up with? What's next? Charging pedestrians to walk in certain parts of the city? Every year the price for everything gets more expensive and most of the services we pay for gets worse. Obviously more money is not the solution. What we need are better ideas, strategies and inventions. You want to charge drivers in the city - then put tolls on the free bridges like the Brooklyn, Manhattan and Williamsburg bridges. There's always a better way or product. It's just the idiots on top think they know best.
  • Carsofchaos The bike lanes aren't even close to carrying "more than the car lanes replaced". You clearly don't drive in Midtown Manhattan on a daily like I do.
  • Carsofchaos The problem with congestion, dear friends, is not the cars per se. I drive into the city daily and the problem is this:Your average street in the area used to be 4 lanes. Now it is a bus lane, a bike lane (now you're down to two lanes), then you have delivery trucks double parking, along with the Uber and Lyft drivers also double parking. So your 4 lane avenue is now a 1.5 lane avenue. Do you now see the problem? Congestion pricing will fix none of these things....what it WILL do is fund persion plans.
  • FreedMike Many F150s I encounter are autonomously driven...and by that I mean they're driving themselves because the dips**ts at the wheel are paying attention to everything else but the road.
  • Tassos A "small car", TIM????????????This is the GLE. Have you even ever SEEN the huge thing at a dealer's??? NOT even the GLC,and Merc has TWO classes even SMALLER than the C (The A and the B, you guessed it? You must be a GENIUS!).THe E is a "MIDSIZED" crossover, NOT A SMALL ONE BY ANY STRETCH OF THE IMAGINATION, oh CLUELESS one.I AM SICK AND TIRED OF THE NONSENSE you post here every god damned day.And I BET you will never even CORRECT your NONSENSE, much less APOLOGIZE for your cluelessness and unprofessionalism.
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