Over 700,000 Diesel Vehicles Must Be Recalled By Daimler
Over 700,000 diesel vehicles have to be recalled by Daimler because of the detection of illegal software. The affected models reportedly are the GLC sport-utility vehicle (SUV), C-Class sedan, and Vito vans. Fines are not part of the picture, nor are there any difficult hardware repairs.
Still, it’s a setback, just not of VW proportions.
None of the vehicles are in the US.
“The KBA will inform the EU Member States’ type-approval authorities and the European Commission of the obligation to call for a mandatory recall for the models concerned, and it will be the responsibility of the authorities to carry out and monitor the recall in each Member State,” a German media outlet reports.
It isn’t completely clear what the intent was with the vehicle software, but the recall order is clear. “We don’t see any evidence that Daimler was designing software to deliberately cheat on emission testing. With this recall, fines are off the table,” said Evercore ISI analyst Arndt Ellinghorst. However, Transport Minister Andreas Scheuer said, “The federal government will order an immediate official recall because of illegal defeat devices.”
VW’s issues with diesel engines were much more far-reaching. It was ruled the company had to pay $25 billion to US authorities. The emissions cheating, scandal, fines, and recalls are all sort of puzzling. Why would any company take such risks? It is hard not to speculate that it’s mainly greed and other human frailties.
The mismanagement of diesel engine vehicles actually might have helped electric cars become more popular. They are much better for human health and environment and it is clear now that they are needed and can’t take over soon enough. Who wants to buy a diesel after hearing all the bad news about them? Inadvertently, all the bad press about diesels might have helped EV manufacturers like Tesla sell more cars, but it has certainly hastened some automakers’ move to electric — such as VW’s and perhaps Daimler’s and BMW’s.
Some German cities are banning the older diesel engines because they produce harmful air pollution and contribute to disease and premature deaths.
Image Credit: CC BY-SA 4.0
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