German Authorities Accuse Fiat Of Using Emissions Defeat Device On 500X

After Volkswagen admitted of cheating emissions tests over a year ago, another

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by Cristian Gnaticov

April 3, 2017 at 16:34

After Volkswagen admitted of cheating emissions tests over a year ago, another automaker is being accused of using a rigged device on one of their cars.

Germany’s transport ministry claims that Fiat used a defeat device on the 500X, as AutoNews reports, citing DerSpiegel, which says the car’s exhaust treatment system switched off filtering after 90 minutes, following a test conducted by the KBA vehicle authority.

Exact details surrounding this incident have yet to be released, since the investigation is at an early stage, but the ministry did say that these results would be sent to the European Commission.

In turn, Fiat denied all accusations, by having an FCA spokesperson state that the 500X conformed to the emissions rules “in all material respects to applicable emissions requirements“, a fact that was verified and confirmed by the Italian ministry of transport.

“We are not in a position to comment on the validity or accuracy of supposed KBA internal documents or on purported emissions tests that we have never seen“, added the spokesperson.

The German weekly magazine reminds of a prior test that showed a Fiat vehicle switching off its exhaust treatment system after 22 minutes, or 2 minutes longer than the emissions test cycle lasts in Europe.