. 24/7 Space News .
CAR TECH
Germany's car bosses bid to head off diesel ban with software patch
By Hui Min NEO
Berlin (AFP) Aug 2, 2017


Germany's powerful car industry offered Wednesday to provide a software upgrade that would cut harmful emissions in 5.3 million vehicles, but the government warned it was only a first step in dredging the sector out of a colossal pollution cheating scandal.

In a bid to head off threats by major cities to partially ban diesel vehicles in their fight against deadly smog, bosses of auto groups Volkswagen, Daimler, BMW and Opel promised a patch that would reduce nitrogen oxide (NOx) emissions by between 25 and 30 percent for cars that have been on the roads for less than nine years.

The carmakers will also stump up incentives for drivers to trade in cars that have been in circulation for ten years and more, said ministers after a meeting with auto industry executives.

Transport Minister Alexander Dobrindt called the measures a "sensible basis" to slash emissions quickly, but Environment Minister Barbara Hendricks said it was only "the first important step", warning that there may still be "gaps that need to be closed".

But at least half of the 5.3 million vehicles were already offered a fix after a pollution cheating scam that engulfed Volkswagen broke in September 2015 -- a point that Greenpeace was quick to point to.

"Instead of protecting millions of people from diesel exhaust fumes, the government is today hooking a dying engine onto an oxygen tank," it charged.

Greg Archer of lobby group Transport and Environment, called the software upgrade a "welcome stop-gap measure" but stressed that "this is not a long-term solution to the air pollution crisis.

"Nor will it make diesel clean," he warned.

- 'Majority back diesel ban' -

Germany's auto sector has been scrambling to rescue its reputation and save diesel motors over the last two years.

The first cracks in the oft-vaunted sector emerged in September 2015, when Volkswagen admitted installing illegal devices in millions of vehicles world-wide to rig pollution emissions readings.

But suspicions of similar cheating have since widened to other German carmakers, including Mercedes-Benz maker Daimler and BMW.

In July, Spiegel magazine heaped on further pressure as it published details of a VW letter to German and European competition authorities which it said showed that auto giants colluded on technology, suppliers, costs, sales and markets since the 1990s.

Adding to the clouds hanging over the industry, a court in Stuttgart -- the home city of Mercedes and Porsche -- ruled that only a partial ban on diesel vehicles would be effective at clearing the air of poisonous NOx emissions.

Germany has already been warned by the European Commission over its air quality, and now public opinion is starting to swing in favour of outlawing diesel.

A survey commissioned by Greenpeace found that 57 percent of Germans back such a ban in cities with poor air quality.

Two months before a general election, the issue is shaping up to be a hot potato topic as Chancellor Angela Merkel needs to weigh the interests of a sector with more than 800,000 jobs in the balance and those of millions of car owners against public health.

"The car industry is of strategic importance ... it must be strong and innovative but also honest. So it's about criticising what needs to be criticised, but to do so while bearing in mind that it's a strategically important industry in Germany," said her spokeswoman Ulrike Demmer on Monday.

- 'Don't demonise diesel' -

The problem is that the industry had plumped for diesel as it spews out less climate-altering carbon dioxide than petrol-burning motors.

While electric cars are viewed as green, electricity generation in Germany is not always clean -- with some 40 percent still stemming from coal.

For these reasons, Merkel herself has warned against "demonising diesel".

But the flip side of the technology is that it emits more NOx, contributing to the formation of smog and fine particles that cause respiratory and cardiac problems.

For now, Germany's auto giants are hoping their voluntarily efforts towards lowering emissions will buy them time as they ramp up electric car development.

Some 15 million diesel vehicles are in circulation in Germany. Such cars also made up 40.5 percent of vehicles sold in July -- after suffering a steep fall in popularity.

For Lower Saxony state premier Stephan Weil, "Germany must remain a car country, but please, with cleaner cars."

bur-hmn/jh

BAYERISCHE MOTOREN WERKE AG

DAIMLER

VOLKSWAGEN

CAR TECH
Diesel at cross-roads as Germany's car bosses, politicians meet
Berlin (AFP) Aug 2, 2017
Bosses of Germany's powerful car industry and top politicians meet Wednesday on the fate of diesel engines, as the sector faces an existential threat after a colossal pollution cheating scandal and new allegations of collusion. With major cities also eyeing partial bans on diesel vehicles to fight deadly smog, the sector with more than 800,000 jobs in the balance desperately needs a strategy ... read more

Related Links
Car Technology at SpaceMart.com


Thanks for being here;
We need your help. The SpaceDaily news network continues to grow but revenues have never been harder to maintain.

With the rise of Ad Blockers, and Facebook - our traditional revenue sources via quality network advertising continues to decline. And unlike so many other news sites, we don't have a paywall - with those annoying usernames and passwords.

Our news coverage takes time and effort to publish 365 days a year.

If you find our news sites informative and useful then please consider becoming a regular supporter or for now make a one off contribution.
SpaceDaily Contributor
$5 Billed Once


credit card or paypal
SpaceDaily Monthly Supporter
$5 Billed Monthly


paypal only


Comment using your Disqus, Facebook, Google or Twitter login.

Share this article via these popular social media networks
del.icio.usdel.icio.us DiggDigg RedditReddit GoogleGoogle

CAR TECH
NASA Offers Space Station as Catalyst for Discovery in Washington

Astronauts gear up for space with tough Russian training

Astronauts grow cucumbers in space to help scientists understand root growth

Russian sanctions won't affect cooperation in space

CAR TECH
ISRO Develops Ship-Based Antenna System to Track Satellite Launches

Aerojet Rocketdyne's RS-25 Flight Controller Goes Three for Three in SLS Test

Three Up, Three Down as NASA Tests RS-25 Flight Controller

Vega to launch two Earth Observation Satellites for Italy, Israel and France

CAR TECH
For Moratorium on Sending Commands to Mars, Blame the Sun

Tributes to wetter times on Mars

Opportunity will spend three weeks at current location due to Solar Conjunction

Curiosity Mars Rover Begins Study of Ridge Destination

CAR TECH
China develops sea launches to boost space commerce

Chinese satellite Zhongxing-9A enters preset orbit

Chinese Space Program: From Setback, to Manned Flights, to the Moon

Chinese Rocket Fizzles Out, Puts Other Launches on Hold

CAR TECH
ASTROSCALE Raises a Total of $25 Million in Series C Led by Private Companies

LISA Pathfinder: bake, rattle and roll

A Final Farewell to LISA Pathfinder

Good Night, Lisa Pathfinder

CAR TECH
Reality check for 'wonder material'

Fundamental breakthrough in the future of designing materials

Engineering on a blue streak

Scientists discover new magnet with nearly massless charge carriers

CAR TECH
A New Search for Extrasolar Planets from the Arecibo Observatory

Gulf of Mexico tube worm is one of the longest-living animals in the world

Molecular Outflow Launched Beyond Disk Around Young Star

Breakthrough Starshot launches tiny spacecraft in quest for Alpha Centauri

CAR TECH
New Horizons Video Soars over Pluto's Majestic Mountains and Icy Plains

Juno spots Jupiter's Great Red Spot

New evidence in support of the Planet Nine hypothesis

NASA's New Horizons Team Strikes Gold in Argentina









The content herein, unless otherwise known to be public domain, are Copyright 1995-2024 - Space Media Network. All websites are published in Australia and are solely subject to Australian law and governed by Fair Use principals for news reporting and research purposes. AFP, UPI and IANS news wire stories are copyright Agence France-Presse, United Press International and Indo-Asia News Service. ESA news reports are copyright European Space Agency. All NASA sourced material is public domain. Additional copyrights may apply in whole or part to other bona fide parties. All articles labeled "by Staff Writers" include reports supplied to Space Media Network by industry news wires, PR agencies, corporate press officers and the like. Such articles are individually curated and edited by Space Media Network staff on the basis of the report's information value to our industry and professional readership. Advertising does not imply endorsement, agreement or approval of any opinions, statements or information provided by Space Media Network on any Web page published or hosted by Space Media Network. General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) Statement Our advertisers use various cookies and the like to deliver the best ad banner available at one time. All network advertising suppliers have GDPR policies (Legitimate Interest) that conform with EU regulations for data collection. By using our websites you consent to cookie based advertising. If you do not agree with this then you must stop using the websites from May 25, 2018. Privacy Statement. Additional information can be found here at About Us.