Germany wants 12 billion diesel cars to be recalled

The German Transport Ministry has asked top automakers of the country to recall over 12 billion diesel vehicles to update the engine management software.

Ever since Volkswagen’s emissions scandal came to light in 2015, diesel vehicles have been time and again subjected to the ire of lawmakers across the globe. And the latest organisation that’s going after diesel vehicles is none other Germany’s Transport Ministry. Reportedly, the Ministry is pushing top automakers to recall over 12 million diesel vehicles to update the engine management software, so as to curb increasing pollution levels in major cities of the country.

The move comes in the wake of the country’s national elections on September 24, 2017, as the authorities are trying to work on reducing the health dangers that arise because of the excessive pollution caused by diesel cars. As per reports, the transport council held a meeting with key automotive players in Germany and asked them to try and cut nitrogen oxide pollution by about 25 per cent. If the automakers agree to do that, it’s estimated that it could cost anywhere between 1.5 billion to 2.5 billion euros to update all the euro-4, euro-5 and euro-6 diesel cars. The government also proposed that the auto industry should bear the cost of the same among themselves.

In April 2016, over 630,000 vehicles were recalled by different manufacturers in Germany to fix diesel emissions management software - albeit that doesn’t seem to have impressed lawmakers of the country since they think pollution levels are still not under control. In fact, cities like Stuttgart and Munich are said to have considered banning some diesel vehicles altogether, citing them as the prime reason behind respiratory diseases in the area.

Source: Reuters