Answer to Question #220268 in Management for Pearl

Question

Discuss the emissions scandal in detail (what was discovered, how it

was discovered). 10marks and please include intext reference as well as reference.

Answer 1

John German, a Michigan engineer, was instrumental in uncovering the Volkswagen emissions issue. According to Kretchmer, (2015) Mr German stated that he informed VW of his findings in May 2014, but that the corporation had neglected to address the issue. The International Council on Clean Transportation (ICCT), a non-profit organization dedicated to lowering automobile emissions, has named John German as its US co-lead. He believed that other companies' vehicles should be probed for the emissions-cheating "defeat device" software found in some Volkswagens. He said that there was a steady stream of evidence indicating that diesel cars emit significant levels of NOx (nitrogen oxides and dioxides) across Europe.

Those who believed the automobiles there would be clean and that they could export the results to Europe were mistaken. VW's then-CEO, Martin Winterkorn, issued a public apology on September 20th, confessing to "breaching the confidence" of customers. Mr German explained, however, that his ICCT organization has been looking into VW since 2013. Mr. German and his colleagues forewent traditional emissions lab studies in favor of instructing researchers to drive their cars - a VW Passat and Jetta, as well as a BMW X5 - on public highways to imitate real-world driving circumstances. The Passat produced emissions that were five to twenty times higher than the legal limit. It was far worse in the Jetta. It was 15-35 times higher than the industry standard. Mr German thought the part was utterly incomprehensible. VW had a chance to correct it, but instead chose to conceal the fact that they had a defeat device.

Reference

Kretchmer, H. (2015). The man who discovered the Volkswagen emissions scandal. BBC News. Retrieved from, https://www.bbc.com/news/business-34519184.