Jeep and Suzuki may leave the car market in Europe
January 25, 2020Jeep and Suzuki have violated EU emission rules because of their diesel models Grand Cherokee, Vitara and S-Cross, according to a Dutch ruling.
Reuters reports that two automakers will face a potential ban on sales across Europe if they do not proceed with a fix for abusive models. RDW said that Jeep developed the software patch and was ordered to recall Grand Cherokee across Europe to apply it.
Dutch authorities said they discovered “prohibited emission strategies” in the aforementioned vehicles, which led to the emission of higher levels of nitric oxide on the road than under test conditions.
Suzuki issued a statement stating that they are fully cooperating with RDW and that they will respond until mid-February when the deadline expires. The Japanese automaker also added that Euro-6b diesel models, which are no longer manufactured, use engines and exhaust gas software supplied by Fiat Chrysler Automobiles (FCA).
Suzuki has already implemented the software update developed by FCA since November 2016 as part of its service campaign. RDW said they would continue to test the software update, which apparently lasted more than two years, since a final report including “certain violations” was sent to Suzuki on November 14, 2019.
The Dutch secretary of state for infrastructure, Stientier van Veldhoven, said she would inform prosecutors about the results of the RDW in a letter to the Dutch parliament.
