Following General Motors’ debacle last year with their ignition switch problem, it was fairly certain that recalls would increase in 2015. This was likely in part because of increased monitoring of potential defects. After all, no automaker wanted to be the next General Motors (even though Chrysler Fiat is having a rough summer) and be subject to a hefty fine for failing to address a potentially harmful defect.
Fast forward to September 2015 and the automaker likely in the most hot water is Volkswagen. While the issue may not be about customers being sickened or injured in their vehicles (yet), the act of continually selling vehicles that did not perform as advertised creates a huge problem for the German automaker.
According to a number of media reports, Volkswagen intentionally concealed that its clean diesel powered cars that it touted emitted lower emissions and were noted as “green friendly” actually were anything but clean. In fact, in regular use, Volkswagen’s vehicles could emit as much as 40 times the legal limit for nitrous oxides. This is definitely a problem.
Not only will Volkswagen face fines for intentionally misleading consumers about their vehicles, the hundreds of thousands of vehicle owners will likely have to bring their cars when a recall is announced. Indeed, there haven’t been any public health safety concerns regarding the vehicles, but any changes due to recalls will likely affect a car’s performance. It remains to be seen whether there will be any consumer class action lawsuits based on this recent revelation.