Mercedes-Benz clean diesel models allegedly contain a device that causes the vehicles to violate US emissions standards when run at cooler temperatures, making them less environmentally friendly than advertised.
The allegation, made in a federal lawsuit filed on Thursday in New Jersey against the German automaker, mirrors similar claims that have beset competitor Volkswagen AG.
It was brought by a Mercedes owner in Illinois, who claims the automaker uses the device in its BlueTec cars to turn off a system meant to reduce nitrogen oxide in its exhaust.
Mercedes parent Daimler AG spokesman Joerg Howe called the claim “baseless” and said the company would review the complaint and defend itself.
The suit, filed by Hagens Berman Sobol Shapiro LLP, a law firm that has been active in pursuing consumer cases against Volkswagen, could not immediately be located in court records.
Daimler fell as much as 4.2 percent, the biggest decline since Feb. 4, and was down 2.1 percent to 63.36 euros at 9:12am in Frankfurt, Germany. The shares have dropped 19 percent so far this year, compared with a 12 percent dip for the benchmark DAX.
The claim comes five months after Volkswagen admitted it installed software in its diesel vehicles to cheat emissions testing, in a scandal that has rippled through the global auto industry.
While automakers generally acknowledge that tests conducted in labs and real-world emissions do not necessarily produce the same results, other manufacturers have denied that they also cheated.
Still, the scandal has tarnished the image of diesel engines, touted by manufacturers as a cleaner technology that is less harmful to the environment.
The device in Mercedes’ diesel models turns off pollution controls at temperatures below 10oC, allowing the cars to violate emissions standards, according to the complaint.
Seattle-based Hagens Berman said it based its allegation in part on an article appearing in this month’s edition of the German magazine Der Spiegel. The magazine reported that Mercedes admitted the shutoff is done to protect the engine, according to the complaint.
The firm also cites a study conducted by independent testing agency TNO for the Dutch Ministry of Infrastructure and the Environment, which said that in real-world testing, a Mercedes C220 emits more nitrogen oxide than measured in laboratory results.
“Mercedes never disclosed to consumers that Mercedes diesels with BlueTec engines may be ‘clean’ diesels when it is warm, but are ‘dirty’ diesels when it is not,” the complaint read. “Mercedes never disclosed that, when the temperature drops below 10 degrees, it prioritizes engine power and profits over people.”
Even if Mercedes is able to make the cars compliant with emissions standards, those who drive them would suffer harm, because the vehicles would not perform as promised or advertised, Hagens Berman said in the complaint.
The suit is seeking a court order compelling Mercedes to recall the affected models or replace them for free, in addition to unspecified damages.
Stephen Garrett, a 27-year-old graduate student, always thought he would study in China, but first the country’s restrictive COVID-19 policies made it nearly impossible and now he has other concerns. The cost is one deterrent, but Garrett is more worried about restrictions on academic freedom and the personal risk of being stranded in China. He is not alone. Only about 700 American students are studying at Chinese universities, down from a peak of nearly 25,000 a decade ago, while there are nearly 300,000 Chinese students at US schools. Some young Americans are discouraged from investing their time in China by what they see
MAJOR DROP: CEO Tim Cook, who is visiting Hanoi, pledged the firm was committed to Vietnam after its smartphone shipments declined 9.6% annually in the first quarter Apple Inc yesterday said it would increase spending on suppliers in Vietnam, a key production hub, as CEO Tim Cook arrived in the country for a two-day visit. The iPhone maker announced the news in a statement on its Web site, but gave no details of how much it would spend or where the money would go. Cook is expected to meet programmers, content creators and students during his visit, online newspaper VnExpress reported. The visit comes as US President Joe Biden’s administration seeks to ramp up Vietnam’s role in the global tech supply chain to reduce the US’ dependence on China. Images on
New apartments in Taiwan’s major cities are getting smaller, while old apartments are increasingly occupied by older people, many of whom live alone, government data showed. The phenomenon has to do with sharpening unaffordable property prices and an aging population, property brokers said. Apartments with one bedroom that are two years old or older have gained a noticeable presence in the nation’s six special municipalities as well as Hsinchu county and city in the past five years, Evertrust Rehouse Co (永慶房產集團) found, citing data from the government’s real-price transaction platform. In Taipei, apartments with one bedroom accounted for 19 percent of deals last
US CONSCULTANT: The US Department of Commerce’s Ursula Burns is a rarely seen US government consultant to be put forward to sit on the board, nominated as an independent director Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電), the world’s largest contract chipmaker, yesterday nominated 10 candidates for its new board of directors, including Ursula Burns from the US Department of Commerce. It is rare that TSMC has nominated a US government consultant to sit on its board. Burns was nominated as one of seven independent directors. She is vice chair of the department’s Advisory Council on Supply Chain Competitiveness. Burns is to stand for election at TSMC’s annual shareholders’ meeting on June 4 along with the rest of the candidates. TSMC chairman Mark Liu (劉德音) was not on the list after in December last