VW Defends Software Updates for Cheater Diesels in Europe

Volkswagen AG insists the repairs it has performed on the emission control systems of 1.2 million diesel-powered vehicles in Europe won’t damage the engines or hurt their fuel efficiency.

But an unnamed European Commission official tells Reuters the agency wants a “legally binding” guarantee with no time limit that declares the technical fixes will have no negative effect on the vehicles.

VW’s repair plans have so far been cleared by Germany’s KBA motor vehicle authority for 5.6 million of the 8.5 million vehicles in Europe the company rigged to cheat on emission tests. A VW spokesman tells Reuters a guarantee declaration “is not necessary” because KBA deemed the updates safe and effective. The company has pledged to complete all repairs on its affected European models by the end of 2017.

Germany’s VZBV consumer advocacy group also is pushing for guarantees but admits it made no progress in a meeting on Friday with VW representatives, Reuters says. Attempts to force VW to compensate affected owners— as the company has agreed to do in the U.S.—have been hobbled by the lack of an American-style mechanism to aggregate customer grievances through class-action lawsuits.