BMW Diesel Engine Emissions Subject of German Police Raid

Many car owners who believe they are driving environmentally friendly automobiles may have been swindled by their car manufacturer. One car company, BMW, is facing allegations that BMW diesel engine emissions do not meet emissions guidelines and that a type of software used in BMW vehicles may make it able for the cars to illegally bypass emissions testing.

The BMW diesel engine emissions allegations center around the 2009-2013 X5 and 2009-2011 335D diesel vehicles manufactured by BMW.

These allegations state that when a BMW diesel car is tested for emissions, an “emissions cheating software” that is installed in these vehicles takes over and reduces emissions levels. When the testing period is over, the car runs again as normal and emits a higher level of harmful emissions, allegations state. Reportedly, this software system was installed in tens of thousands of BMW cars that run on diesel fuel.

What is a Diesel Vehicle?

People often buy diesel vehicles because of better gas mileage. Many times, a diesel car will get 20 to 30 percent more miles per gallon than traditional cars. This is desirable to many drivers who wish to save money.

Additionally, diesel cars are said to perform better than non-diesel cars. Reportedly, diesel cars can accelerate quicker and have better highway driving, better torque and towing capacity.

However, the drawback to owning a diesel car is that they produce a high level of a harmful emissions chemical known as nitrogen oxide. This chemical is harmful to the environment and harmful to people who come in contact with it.

Because of this, automakers have struggled to produce “clean diesel” cars that have the same fuel efficiency and torque of diesel cars, but have reduced harmful emissions.

It has been reported that BMW installed a software program in its 2009-2013 X5 and 2009-2011 335D diesel vehicles that manipulated BMW diesel engine emissions.

A class action lawsuit has been filed against BMW North America stating that customers were led to believe that the emissions of their BMW diesel cars were lower during emissions testing than what they actually were under real driving conditions. The actual level of the BMW diesel engine emissions in these cars is much higher, plaintiffs claim, then what is allowed by federal emissions standards.

German Raid of BMW

In fact, this alleged failure to report correct emissions is so severe that CNN Money recently reported a large-scale police raid of the Germany-based BMW manufacturing facility in Munich to check reports of BMW diesel engine emissions cheating.

CNN Money reports that BMW has admitted to updating over 11,000 cars “with incorrect software that could have affected their emissions.”

In a statement, BMW said, “The BMW Group continues to assume that the situation was caused by an incorrect allocation of the software and does not represent a deliberate attempt to manipulate exhaust emissions.”

Filing a BMW Diesel Engine Emissions Lawsuit

Many consumers have assumed that BMW diesel cars were “environmentally friendly” and that the harmful fumes were turned into “environmentally compatible nitrogen and water vapor” because BMW communicated that to the public. However, accusations of emissions cheating point to the distinct possibility that it isn’t true.

If you have purchased a BMW 2009-2013 X5 and 2009-2011 335D diesel vehicle and you suspect that your car is producing higher BMW diesel engine emissions than you were led to believe, you may benefit from speaking with an experienced attorney who can assist you in determining the right legal path.

Join a Free BMW Diesel Emissions Class Action Lawsuit Investigation

If you own or owned a 2009-2013 BMW X5 or 2009-2011 335D diesel vehicle, you may qualify to file a BMW diesel emissions lawsuit or class action lawsuit.

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