FRANKFURT -- Continental said software it supplied to Volkswagen Group cannot be used to manipulate emissions test results.
"We are sure that the software that we deliver to VW is not appropriate to manipulate any emissions test results," a Continental spokesman told Automotive News Europe. VW was responsible for certification and programming of the software, the spokesman added.
Continental provided fuel injectors, fuel pumps and equipment to manage the motor, the company said a separate statement to the New York Times on Sunday. The parts were used in the engine control system for 1.6-liter versions of the EA 189 engines caught up in VW Group’s global diesel-emissions scandal.
VW Group may have to recall up to 11 million cars worldwide from its VW, Audi, Skoda, Seat and light commercial vehicle brands to fix software that can cheat emissions tests.
Robert Bosch supplied engine management software for 2.0-liter EA 189 diesels that U.S. regulators said were manipulated with a "defeat" device to fool emissions control tests.
German newspaper Bild am Sonntag said the 2.0-liter diesel will be easy to fix because all that is required is a software update that can be done at certified workshops.
The problem in the 1.6-liter diesel will be a more costly to fix because the injector nozzle will have to be replaced and the software needs to be updated, according to the newspaper.
Several VW engineers have admitted to installing the cheat software in 2008, according to Bild am Sonntag. The decision was made because there was no other way to comply with U.S. standards for smog-causing nitrogen oxides (NOx) emissions while meeting internal cost targets.
In a report last week Bild am Sonntag said it would cost 300 euros per engine to use a urea system that would enable the engine to meet NOx requirements.
Bosch has said it had delivered components to VW that are now at the center of a probe into rigged emissions tests but said responsibility for configuring handling characteristics of these components lies with the automaker.
Bosch also warned Volkswagen in 2007 that it would be illegal to use engine management software it supplied to VW for test purposes for production cars, according Bild am Sonntag.
The Wall Street Journal reported that one of several plaintiffs’ law firms pursuing legal action in the emissions-testing scandal has sent a "document preservation" letter to Bosch, asking its executives to retain documents that could pertain to emissions-related components supplied to VW. Document-preservation letters are a routine legal maneuver by attorneys weighing how broadly to cast their net in litigation, the newspaper said.
