Volkswagen Diesel Engine Lawsuits

Owners of recalled Volkswagen and Audi vehicles with TDI “clean” diesel engine may have been entitled to financial compensation after the auto maker admitted that it installed software designed to cheat on emissions tests in the United States.

STATUS OF VOLKSWAGEN LAWSUITS: Thousands of vehicle owners pursued financial compensation as a result of damages stemming from the recall, including loss of value and premiums paid for the non-existent clean air features on their vehicles. Volkswagen recall lawyers investigated potential claims for owners of the following diesel vehicles:

• 2012-2015 VW Beetle and Beetle Convertible
• 2010-2015 VW Golf
• 2015 VW Golf Sportwagen
• 2009-2015 VW Jetta
• 2009-2014 VW Jetta Sportwagen
• 2012-2015 VW Passat
• 2014 VW Toureg
• 2010-2015 Audi A3
• 2016 Audi A6 Quatro
• 2016 Audi A8
• 2016 Audi A8L
• 2016 Audi Q5
• 2015 Porsche Cayenne

AboutLawsuits.com is no longer reviewing new claims involving Volkswagen diesel engines. This page is maintained for informational purposes only.

Volkswagen Diesel Engine Lawsuits

OVERVIEW: On September 18, 2015, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced a “notice of violation” of the Clean Air Act against Volkswagen and it’s Audi and U.S. Volkswagen subsidiaries.

According to the accusations, Volkswagen had been installing what are known as “defeat devices” in four-cylinder diesel vehicles sold worldwide to fool air quality emissions tests. This software was designed to detect when the vehicles are being tested, and then activate a number of features that ensure the emissions meet air quality standards. However, once the test is over, the features are shut off, because they significantly impact the vehicle’s performance otherwise.

Although Volkswagen promoted the vehicles as low polluting cars that were eco-friendly, the EPA estimates that the diesel vehicles were spewing out nitrogen oxide and other pollutants at a rate 10 to 40 times that allowed by U.S. air quality standards.

In November 2015, a second notice of violation of the clean air act was filed, indicating that additional high-end diesel vehicles sold by VW, Audi and Porsche had the same cheat software.

VOLKSWAGEN DIESEL RECALL: The EPA ordered Volkswagen to recall about 500,000 vehicles with defeat device software sold in the U.S.

The company has admitted that a total of 11 million vehicles sold worldwide have the software, and reports suggest that the auto maker has known about the Volkswagen diesel emissions problems since 2009.

Consumers paid extra for these vehicles in many cases, because they believed they were getting premium eco-friendly vehicle that would prevent further pollution of the air. The additional cost for the “clean diesel” engines often ranged from $2,000 to $6,000.

Additionally, the resale value for the recalled Volkswagen diesel engines have plummeted, meaning owners will likely get substantially less for selling the vehicles or trading them in.

In June 2016, VW agreed to pay $14.7 billion to settle claims by the U.S. government, including a buy-back program for owners and investments in pollution control and zero emission technology. However, it still faces individual and class action lawsuits from consumers.

In January, VW reportedly agreed to pay an additional $4.3 billion in civil fines and penalties for violating U.S. laws.