CARS.COM — Citing two unnamed dealers who attended a meeting with Volkswagen executives, the Associated Press reports that the automaker is close to having a new proposed fix for the diesel 2.0-liter engines at the heart of its massive emissions scandal. Those engines are in some 475,000 Volkswagen Group cars from the 2009 to 2015 model years.
Related: VW Diesels May Still Pollute More, Even When Fixed
The diesel four-cylinder at issue comes in three distinct generations. The first-generation engine, installed in various 2009-14 Volkswagen four-cylinder TDI vehicles, as well as the 2010-13 Audi A3 TDI, will get a larger catalytic converter and software updates, the AP quoted one of the dealers as saying.
The second-generation diesel engine is in the 2012-14 Volkswagen Passat TDI; the third-gen diesel is in various model-year 2015 TDI cars. AP quoted the dealer as saying that second-generation cars will only require a software update, while third-generation cars will require a software update followed by hardware changes later on. AP went on to quote one of the two dealers as saying that in a small batch of testing, Volkswagen found the fixes did not noticeably impact gas mileage, horsepower or torque.
A source who attended the meeting with Volkswagen executives confirmed to that the automaker’s initial testing showed minimal impact on those three factors.
Nick Conger, an EPA spokesman, said the agency wouldn’t comment on the report. A California Air Resources Board spokesperson did not immediately respond to our questions.
Jeannine Ginivan, a VW spokeswoman, said the automaker “cannot comment on remedies until they are approved by the regulators” but will “continue to work with them to find an approved remedy.”
At the heart of the problem is nitrogen oxide, a pollutant that can cause asthma and other respiratory illnesses. Illegal software allowed the exhaust systems in Volkswagen’s diesel cars to filter out enough during emissions testing to comply with EPA rules, but allowed the cars to emit much more in real driving. Lawsuits filed by three states this week allege that VW used the software in the first-gen cars; it decided not to use a bulkier and costlier urea-injection emissions system, but found the simpler catalyst system with a nitrogen oxide “trap” could not comply with U.S. regulations for required useful life.
The source who attended the meeting also told that the proposed solution involves a new nitrogen oxide trap as well as other components.
Any proposed fix still would require regulatory approval from the EPA and the CARB. That’s proven elusive so far; CARB rejected a proposed fix for Volkswagen’s 2.0-liter diesels in January.
It also may not bring the cars fully back into compliance with the allowable emissions levels that applied at the time. Under the Volkswagen Group’s June 28 proposed settlement, any proposed solution doesn’t necessarily need to meet previous emissions targets. It merely has to come close enough that Volkswagen can atone for the differences through payments that would finance other environmental reparations.
The automaker faces deadlines between Oct. 14, 2016, and March 3, 2017, to submit fixes for its various four-cylinder diesel generations. The proposed settlement does not require Volkswagen to come up with an approved fix, but requires the automaker to repurchase affected vehicles that can’t be fixed at pre-scandal values without being able to resell them afterward.
The latest proposal, as reported, would not apply to Volkswagen’s diesel 3.0-liter V-6, which is under the hood of some 80,000 Volkswagen, Audi and Porsche models from the 2013 to 2016 model years. (Audi and Porsche are both Volkswagen Group brands.) Regulators last week rejected a initial proposed fix for this group.