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Germany Raids Hyundai and Kia for Software Cheating Diesel Emissions

When Dieselgate and similar scandals seem long gone, the past repeats itself with some new characters. This time, it is the German government that is raiding Hyundai and Kia offices after evidence of devices that cheat diesel emissions. At least one character remains the same: Bosch.
Hyundai CRDi engine 6 photos
Photo: Hyundai
Hyundai and Kia turbodiesel enginesKia turbodiesel engineHyundai CRDi engineHyundai CRDi engineKia turbodiesel engine
According to German authorities, 210,000 diesel vehicles from these two Korean brands would have the issue. The engine software allegedly came from Bosch and Delphi, which now belongs to BorgWarner. If that is confirmed, it would be a different role than that Bosch played at Dieselgate.

The German supplier was fined €90 million ($94.7 million at the current exchange rate) for negligence. The software design would have come from automakers, who are also responsible for proving that their vehicles meet emission limits. Bosch would have just failed by allowing it to be installed in its components.

Eight Kia and Hyundai properties in Germany and Luxembourg were subject to searches. The goal was to find elements to prove that the Korean brands followed the same strategy Volkswagen adopted to sell diesel vehicles that did not respect emission limits in the U.S. Reuters said the operation was coordinated by the European Union agency Eurojust.

If you do not remember Dieselgate, the engine software identified emission testing procedures and immediately adopted a profile that made it respect the legal limits during these tests.

When the car was just driving around, the software allowed the diesel engine to follow a different mapping, making the vehicle more engaging to drive but also more polluting. When Volkswagen fixed the cars, multiple owners said they were weaker and burned more diesel than before.

Hyundai confirmed the raids and said that it is collaborating with the German and European authorities. Reuters did not mention if the Korean carmaker denied the accusations or not. If it really did not, that is a bad sign for the owners of these 210,000 diesel vehicles.
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Editor's note: The gallery contains turbodiesel engines from Hyundai and Kia for illustration purposes. We still do not know which engines present the cheating software.

About the author: Gustavo Henrique Ruffo
Gustavo Henrique Ruffo profile photo

Motoring writer since 1998, Gustavo wants to write relevant stories about cars and their shift to a sustainable future.
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