Fiat Chrysler accused of US diesel cheat

UPDATE 13/01/2017 10:00am: FCA USA has issued the following response to the EPA's norice of violation.

"FCA US is disappointed that the EPA has chosen to issue a notice of violation with respect to the emissions control technology employed in the company’s 2014-16 model year light duty 3.0-liter diesel engines.

"FCA US intends to work with the incoming administration to present its case and resolve this matter fairly and equitably and to assure the EPA and FCA US customers that the company’s diesel-powered vehicles meet all applicable regulatory requirements.

"FCA US diesel engines are equipped with state-of-the-art emission control systems hardware, including selective catalytic reduction (SCR).  Every auto manufacturer must employ various strategies to control tailpipe emissions in order to balance EPA’s regulatory requirements for low nitrogen oxide (NOx) emissions and requirements for engine durability and performance, safety and fuel efficiency. FCA US believes that its emission control systems meet the applicable requirements.

"FCA US has spent months providing voluminous information in response to requests from EPA  and other governmental authorities and has sought to explain its emissions control technology to EPA representatives.  FCA US has proposed a number of actions to address EPA’s concerns, including developing extensive software changes to our emissions control strategies that could be implemented in these vehicles immediately to further improve emissions performance.

"FCA US looks forward to the opportunity to meet with the EPA’s enforcement division and representatives of the new administration to demonstrate that FCA US’s emissions control strategies are properly justified and thus are not “defeat devices” under applicable regulations and to resolve this matter expeditiously."

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The United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has announced it plans to charge Fiat Chrysler Automobiles (FCA) with using unlawful software that allowed excess diesel emissions in more than 100,000 pickups and SUVs in the US.

The EPA believes the cheat software, that's believed to have been used in Chrysler, Dodge and Jeep vehicles since 2014, is in direct violation of the law.

FCA has reportedly declined to comment on the EPA's findings.

Instead, speaking to US news channel CNBC, FCA confirmed the investigation was in process and said that it would contest the allegations since it believed all its vehicles were within the law and met all EPA standards.

The defence FCA is expected to rely on is that the 'cheat' software was in place to protect the engine from damage -- something that is lawful under the EPA rules, but only in limited circumstances and only if the 'auxiliary emissions control device' has been declared to officials.

Following the announcement that it was under investigation, FCA saw its shares drop by 18 per cent.

The move to press charges follows months of uncertainty in the US for both the Chrysler, Dodge and Jeep brands as the EPA repeatedly refused to certify any FCA diesels for sale in the US for 2017.

In response, FCA made the decision to continue to sell 2016-spec diesel models to customers.

As part of the probe, EPA investigators have demanded FCA surrender documents relevant to the car-making giant's US operations.

If found guilty, FCA could be fined up to $US37,500 ($A50,000) per vehicle caught with the emissions cheating software.

It's not yet known if any Jeep diesels sold outside of the US might be affected.