New diesel cars will be road tested by EPA in wake of VW scandal

On Sunday, The New York Times reported that the United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) will be expanding its tests on diesel passenger vehicles, including on-road testing in addition to lab tests.

The changes come on the heels of a massive scandal involving Volkswagen Group diesel cars, which were found to have included “defeat devices” that prevented the cars’ emissions control systems from working on the road but allowed the system to kick in when the cars were being tested for emissions compliance in a lab.

In the US, lab tests on new cars are ordered by auto manufacturers and sent to the EPA for vehicle certification. The EPA can randomly check those lab tests with on-road tests or more lab tests, but Volkswagen was able to circumvent the EPA’s emissions regulations for years without being caught. Defeat devices aren’t new either—since the '70s auto manufacturers (including Volkswagen) have been caught building mechanical and digital work-arounds to pass regulators’ tests while allowing the car to spew pollutants during real-world use.

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