Opel CEO denies emissions cheating

Opel CEO Karl-Thomas Neumann has denied claims that the manufacturer has used software to cheat emissions tests.

The claims stem from a joint investigation by Spiegel magazine, ARD television’s Monitor program and the Deutsche Umwelthilfe environmentalist group that suggested Zafira compact vans and Insignia sedans featured software that cut off emissions controls under certain conditions - similar to the defeat device Volkswagen (VW) admitted to using in some of its diesel engines last year.

A raft of allegations and investigations have taken place since the VW ‘dieselgate’ scandal, as public trust in the automotive industry has waned.

Neumann released a statement saying ‘we at Opel don’t have any illegal software’, but Spiegel and ARD are standing by the story.

Representatives from Opel now have plans to meet with the German Transport Minister Alexander Dobrindt to discuss possible emissions manipulation.

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