Photo: Volkswagen
Did you think it was over? The Dieselgate scandal has a way of coming back, like a bad case of the flue. Reports have shown fuel economy and performance aren't negatively affected. But some 145,000 cars will require more frequent refills of AdBlue.
German magazine Motor Talk has a detailed breakup of the cars affected, five models. The worst off is the VW Sharan built between 2010 to 2015 - 70,000 units that have the 2.0 TDI making 115, 140, 170 and 177 PS.
These Euro 5 engines have the SCR catalyst that lowers nitrogen oxide using a mix of 32.5% urea and 67.5 deionized water. About 13,000 units of the Passat and Passat CC, built between 2010 to 2015, have this problem as well. We don't really understand why these 4-door cars are Euro 6 instead of Euro 5, or why only the 140 PS version have the problem. But this could be a much bigger problem.
The VW Sharan has a twin, the SEAT Alhambra. About 34,000 units of this Spanish MPV that were built between 2010 and 2015 are affected. They too have outputs ranging from 115 PS to 177 PS. The odd thing is that I read another article saying a man with a brand new Alhambra, fresh off the line, has the defeat device on his car. So SEAT might have cut a few corners during the facelift of the MPV.
The final passenger car affected by this problem is the Audi Q5. The problematic SUVs were put together from 2008 to 2014 with the 2.0 TDI S Tronic quattro 170 PS and 177 PS powertrains, about 28,000 of them, to be precise. What we don't get is why the Audi A4 and A5 don't have this issue. Don't they offer the same engines?
A Volkswagen statement says that even after the new software is installed, AdBlue consumption will still be within the official parameters and in line with the rival manufacturers. However, it's nearly impossible to predict the real-world costs because every dealership charges a different amount. But the AdBlue injection into the SCR is controlled by the onboard computer, so Volkswagen knows the new numbers because it wrote the software.
These Euro 5 engines have the SCR catalyst that lowers nitrogen oxide using a mix of 32.5% urea and 67.5 deionized water. About 13,000 units of the Passat and Passat CC, built between 2010 to 2015, have this problem as well. We don't really understand why these 4-door cars are Euro 6 instead of Euro 5, or why only the 140 PS version have the problem. But this could be a much bigger problem.
The VW Sharan has a twin, the SEAT Alhambra. About 34,000 units of this Spanish MPV that were built between 2010 and 2015 are affected. They too have outputs ranging from 115 PS to 177 PS. The odd thing is that I read another article saying a man with a brand new Alhambra, fresh off the line, has the defeat device on his car. So SEAT might have cut a few corners during the facelift of the MPV.
The final passenger car affected by this problem is the Audi Q5. The problematic SUVs were put together from 2008 to 2014 with the 2.0 TDI S Tronic quattro 170 PS and 177 PS powertrains, about 28,000 of them, to be precise. What we don't get is why the Audi A4 and A5 don't have this issue. Don't they offer the same engines?
A Volkswagen statement says that even after the new software is installed, AdBlue consumption will still be within the official parameters and in line with the rival manufacturers. However, it's nearly impossible to predict the real-world costs because every dealership charges a different amount. But the AdBlue injection into the SCR is controlled by the onboard computer, so Volkswagen knows the new numbers because it wrote the software.
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