Porsche under suspicion! The brand opens an investigation into possible manipulation of its engines

Four years ago, the Dieselgate scandal shook the foundations of the all-powerful Volkswagen and of diesel engines in general. These engines were already under scrutiny as the automotive industry moved towards electrification, and the sheer scale of the problem handed their critics the final blow. Even so, although their market share is smaller, diesels have stayed on the market and have become part of the hybridisation strategy for some brands’ ranges.

It was something people had suspected. The first inquiries pointed at a giant such as the Volkswagen Group, whose diesel engines, known as EA288 in the United States and Canada and EA189 in Europe and other markets sold between 2015 and 2017, were fitted with illegal software that could substantially and automatically manipulate the emissions they produced. This deceived both the authorities responsible for measuring and assigning emissions values by model and the owners, who were in fact buying a more polluting car.

In the end, the deception was proven, and the consequences varied greatly depending on the country. In countries such as Spain, the matter ended in a reprimand and an obligation for affected owners to update their vehicles’ software. In others, such as Germany and the United States, the German giant committed to paying compensation in cash to those affected, buying back cars or exchanging them for vehicles of equal value, as well as heavy fines. Heavyweights such as Rupert Stadler, CEO of Audi, were also arrested in Germany.

In the whole Dieselgate affair, the brands most tarnished were Volkswagen and Audi, though other brands in the group were affected to a lesser degree, or perhaps received less media attention. An example is Porsche, which in 2017 had to face accusations regarding its V6 TDI engine, which also came under scrutiny. A year later, in 2018, Porsche’s head of transmissions and engines, Jörg Kerner, was arrested for his involvement in the Dieselgate scandal, as he had worked for Audi during those years.

After a couple of years of calm, Porsche is once again in the headlines, with a suspicion of manipulated emissions in its engines, this time involving the petrol engine. According to the German publication Bild am Sonntag, Porsche has launched an investigation to clarify what is happening with the emissions of the engines fitted to the Panamera and 911 built between 2008 and 2013. To this end, the brand is holding talks with employees and technicians, and reviewing meeting protocols and hundreds of emails to get to the bottom of the matter.

Porsche is keeping a low profile while awaiting the findings, but according to the same German outlet, the brand has already notified the KBA, the Federal Motor Transport Authority, and the US authorities so that they also open an official investigation into whether there are illegal elements affecting the engine and exhaust system that consequently manipulate the emissions values produced. For now, this is all that is known. Although the brand has not given specific details, it seems these manipulations would not affect newer models.