Daimler has begun conducting an internal investigation regarding its diesel exhaust emissions in the US, at the request of the Department of Justice.
This comes on the heels of a lawsuit filed by US Mercedes owners back in February, in which they claimed that the German automaker’s diesel cars didn’t respect their own emissions standards.
According to Autonews, the claim states that Mercedes BlueTEC models carried a “defeat device”, much like the one that destroyed VW’s image in the US as far as their diesel cars were concerned, and that nitrogen oxide emissions were far higher during all road tests than they were during laboratory tests.
Of course, Daimler responded by saying that the lawsuit was “without merit” adding that they’ll be “cooperating fully with the authorities.”
While it’s unclear what started this new investigation, Evercore ISI analyst Arndt Ellinghorst said that it could be related to certein accusations from Europe which state that Mercedes is using auxiliary emission control devices (AECD) in order to improve fuel efficiency on their cars.
“In our view, these AECDs are not ‘cheat devices’ and each modern car has those as part of its engine management software,” said Ellinghorst. “However, these AECDs need to be declared when certifying engines. There might have been an issue in the U.S. certification process.”
Unlike with VW, the US DoJ seems to be working alone now, which comes as a surprise to the Evercore ISI analyst.
“There might have been an issue in the US certification process but again, surprising to us that the DOJ is stepping ahead without mentioning the EPA or CARB in our view,” he stated.
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