South Korea Bans Sales Of 10 BMW, Nissan, & Porsche Models Owing To Fabricated Emissions Tests
Following an earlier decision by the South Korean government to ban the sale of some Volkswagen models (following emissions testing irregularities), authorities in the country have now banned the sale of 10 models offered by BMW, Nissan, and Volkswagen Group’s Porsche brand as well.
The sales bans follow the discovery that these auto manufacturers “fabricated documents related to emission tests.”
In addition to the sales bans, the 3 foreign auto manufacturers were also fined a total of 7.17 billion won (~$5.9 million). The Ministry of Environment has now withdrawn the certifications given to the 10 vehicle models in question. Though, only 6 of these models were still on sale — the other 4 were apparently already discontinued.
Automotive News provides more:
“Carmakers and component suppliers worldwide are facing increased scrutiny following a spate of product performance scandals at companies including VW Group, Takata and Mitsubishi Motors. Last month, South Korea imposed a record fine on VW’s local unit for falsely advertising emissions ratings on cars sold in the country and in August blocked sales of 80 of the automaker’s models because it fabricated documents related to emissions and noise-level tests.
“Imported cars accounted for about 15% of the market in South Korea in the 11 months through November, and the most popular choices include diesel models made by BMW and Daimler’s Mercedes-Benz, according to data from the Korea Automobile Importers and Distributors Association.”
How have the auto manufacturers in question responded to the news? A rep for BMW has publicly stated that the firm will be working on regaining the lost certifications; a rep for Nissan said that the firm would be cooperating with regulators; and a rep for Porsche apparently said nothing, as calls to Porsche Korea’s office in the country’s capital, Seoul, apparently went unanswered.
For more background on recent related happenings in the country, see:
South Korea Expanding Volkswagen Emissions Investigation To Include All Foreign Auto Manufacturers.
Image by Closenoble (CC BY-SA)
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