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Mercedes and Bosch Agree to Settle Diesel Emissions Lawsuit in Arizona

Volkswagen wasn’t alone in employing so-called “defeat devices” in their diesel-engined cars. Mercedes also used illegal software designed to activate emissions controls only during emissions testing, which is why the German automaker has received a lot of flak for its BlueTEC engines.
Mercedes-Benz GLE 350 d Coupe 7 photos
Photo: Mercedes-Benz
Mercedes-Benz GLE 350 d CoupeMercedes-Benz GLE 350 d CoupeMercedes-Benz GLE 350 d CoupeMercedes-Benz GLE 350 d CoupeMercedes-Benz GLE 350 d CoupeMercedes-Benz GLE 350 d Coupe
First and foremost, BlueTEC is the Stuttgart-based automaker’s way of saying turbo diesel with NOx-reducing technology. Mercedes and Bosch were first sued over diesel emissions cheating in the wake of the Dieselgate scandal, with Daimler AG fined 870 million euros ($957 million) in Germany in 2019 for negligent violation of supervisory duties.

Arizona Attorney General Mark Brnovich has recently announced consent judgments with Mercedes and Bosch in the Grand Canyon State, with both parties required to pony up six million freedom eagles for deceiving their customers. “Arizona demands truth in advertising to assist consumers in making the most informed decisions for themselves,” declared Brnovich.

Mercedes-Benz will pay $2,835,000 in consumer restitution. Each qualifying Arizona-based consumer will receive no more than $625 per affected vehicle. $2,715,000 in penalties will also be paid, whereas Bosch has agreed to pay $525,000 under the proposed consent judgments.

Filed in January 2019, the lawsuit alleges Mercedes and parent company Daimler AG deceived customers with false representations of BlueTEC-engined vehicles. Then marketed as the most environmentally-conscious diesel option in the world, BlueTEC mills proved to be anything but clean.

For example, quite a few years back, when Dieselgate was in full swing, the Dutch Organization for Applied Science Research conducted a real-world test of a Mercedes-Benz C 220 CDI BlueTEC, discovering that it emits 40 times (yes, that’s 40 times!) the permitted level of nitrogen oxides.

Given the whole Dieselgate saga that included way too many cases of emissions cheating from Fiat Chrysler Automobiles, Opel, Nissan, and Renault, does it come as a surprise that legacy automakers are currently pouring billions over billions of dollars into electric vehicle development?
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 Download: Merceds and Bosch proposed consent judgments (PDF)

About the author: Mircea Panait
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After a 1:43 scale model of a Ferrari 250 GTO sparked Mircea's interest for cars when he was a kid, an early internship at Top Gear sealed his career path. He's most interested in muscle cars and American trucks, but he takes a passing interest in quirky kei cars as well.
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