Fiat hits back at German transport body over emissions tests
Fiat Chrysler Automobiles has hit back at the German transport authority over allegations that it installed illegal defeat devices in its vehicles to manipulate emissions tests — in an echo of the Volkswagen scandal.
On Monday, a growing feud between the Italian-American company and Germany’s KBA escalated when the carmaker said that the transport body was not a “competent” authority to test its cars.
Over the weekend, reports in a German newspaper stated that the KBA had found evidence of software in Fiat cars designed to cheat emissions tests — and suggested that the company could face a sales ban in Germany.
Shares in FCA fell 6 per cent on Monday morning, leading the company to issue a robust statement defending itself.
“We believe all our vehicles respect EU emissions standards and we believe Italian regulators are the competent authority to evaluate this,” the company said.
FCA shares later recovered some ground to close 4.2 per cent lower at €6.05 in Milan.
Under European rules, Italy is responsible for testing Fiat cars to check that they comply with EU-wide standards. But a report in the Bild newspaper said that the KBA had found “adequate evidence of an illegal defeat device”.
Following the report, the KBA confirmed that it had passed findings to the European Commission and to the relevant Italian authorities, but refused to comment further.
Vehicle emissions testing has been thrown into sharp focus after Volkswagen last year admitted to installing defeat devices in 11m cars worldwide, in order to make their engine emissions seem compliant in laboratory conditions.
In the wake of this scandal, several European authorities, including the KBA, began investigations into the real-world performance of all vehicles sold in their countries.
So far, General Motors’ Opel division, Daimler’s Mercedes-Benz and several VW brands have been drawn into these probes.
FCA’s feud with the German authorities has been brewing for several weeks, since reports first emerged suggesting that the KBA had found evidence of engine management software in Fiat cars.
These reports claimed that the Fiat software shut down an emissions reduction feature after 22 minutes, which is two minutes longer than the standard emissions test.
Relations between Fiat and the German authorities deteriorated further last week when the company failed to attend a meeting with German transport minister Alexander Dobrindt to discuss the KBA’s findings.
Bild’s report over the weekend cited German transport ministry sources claiming that FCA could face a sales ban in the country until the matter is resolved. Germany is Fiat’s second-largest European market after Italy.
Last month, Sergio Marchionne, chief executive of Fiat Chrysler, said that there was “a phenomenal amount of confusion” over the rules for emission control across Europe.
He said that there was no clarity on what is a “sound technical reason” for suspending a vehicle’s emissions controls.
“There needs to be much better co-ordination across national bodies about what it is that is effectively allowed as relevant technology used to meet emission standards,” he said. “We have done our best to meet these standards over time.”