The world’s number one car maker’s image is taking a beating, and with it the very credibility of clean diesel technology. Volkswagen’s name has been blackened by the accusations levelled at it by the US Environmental Protection Agency. Experts say openly: ‘Volkswagen has been cheating’.

Analyst Sam Abuelsamid, at Navigant Research, said: “The EPA is accusing Volkswagen of essentially putting a cheat code into their engine management system for these diesel engines that would enable them to pass the emissions tests and also smog tests in states like California and other states, while emitting far more than the allowable amount of NOx during real-world driving.”

‘NOx’ refers to nitric oxide and nitrogen dioxide, air pollutants that can provoke smog and acid rain and react with ozone. They are also linked to asthma and other respiratory ailments.

The NGO International Council on Clean Transportation (ICCT) revealed it was VW’s vastly differing test scores that called for special a