The EA189 scandalous engine is also sometimes found in Audi diesel cars. It was developed by the parent company Volkswagen. Could it be that this was why no one at Audi knew anything about the exhaust gas fraud?
In the diesel scandal, most Audi buyers sued the parent company VW for damages – but there are also claims against Audi directly.
Today the highest civil judges of the Federal Court of Justice (BGH) are negotiating four new cases. Whether there is already a judgment is open.
The background to this is that the EA189 scandalous engine is also found in some of Audi’s diesel models. But it was developed at Volkswagen. “Therefore, from our point of view, there is no allegedly immoral and damaging deception,” said an Audi spokesman.
The BGH has already ruled twice on claims for damages against Audi and has set very high hurdles in the process. The mere fact that the engine was also used by the Ingolstadt-based car manufacturer has so far not been enough for the Karlsruhe judges. They demand concrete evidence that those responsible at Audi at least knew about the exhaust gas fraud. A “attribution of knowledge” beyond the boundaries of the group companies is not possible.
The cases now all come from the Munich Higher Regional Court, which had awarded the plaintiffs damages. The judges there said that Audi had fraudulently deceived its customers. It seems to be impossible that the engine could have been installed almost blindly without own testing and knowledge of the essential characteristics. Audi has appealed against these rulings. (Az. VII ZR 238/20 etc.)
At VW, the BGH assumes that the use of illegal exhaust technology in millions of vehicles must have been based on a strategic decision at a high level. Authorities and customers have been systematically duped. Therefore, claimants who meet the requirements can in principle return their car to VW. However, you do not get the full purchase price back, but have to count the kilometers driven.
Only comparatively few claims for damages are directed against Audi because of the EA189 engine. The automaker speaks of a low four-digit number of ongoing proceedings.
But there are also lawsuits about other diesel engines that were manufactured directly by Audi. Two such cases are to be heard for the first time in Karlsruhe on December 16.
Source From: Stern
Jane Stock is a technology author, who has written for 24 Hours World. She writes about the latest in technology news and trends, and is always on the lookout for new and innovative ways to improve his audience’s experience.
