About 1m Ford diesel cars sold in UK with defective emissions controls, court told
About a million Ford diesel cars were sold in the UK with serious defects in components supposed to curb toxic exhaust emissions, the high court has been told.The highly polluting vehicles were produced and sold between 2016 and 2018 after Ford’s engineers became aware of the issues, and many were never formally recalled or fixed, lawyers said.The claims came in evidence submitted in the legal action on behalf of 1.6 million diesel vehicle owners against five car manufacturers, including Ford, for allegedly using “defeat devices” to cheat emissions tests for nitrogen oxides (NOx).Parts of the emissions control systems as calibrated by Ford were discovered to become less effective when “poisoned” by sulphur in fuel during driving, the court heard.
In 2017, when tested in service, 27 out of 27 Ford vehicles with Euro 6 engines failed the New European Driving Cycle (NEDC) emissions tests,Cross-examining Marcus Davies, Ford’s former calibration manager, in the high court, Thomas de la Mare KC said that the systems had not been “sufficiently tested” and that “the scale of the problem” amounted to “one million vehicles affected”,It was a “generic issue affecting the best part of a million cars”, de la Mare claimed,Davies played down the 1m figure,“It’s not every vehicle that would have this problem,” he said.
New software was implemented in production lines from 2018, and some Ford customers whose cars were serviced at official dealers also received a software update to address the problem, but there was no wider recall, the court was told.De La Mare said: “You must have appreciated that the update would not rectify the situation.”Davies replied: “It would improve it.”“But not make it compliant with the NEDC,” de la Mare replied.In the broader case, the claimants argued that Ford had deliberately calibrated its engines to pass certification tests rather than reduce real world driving emissions.
Referencing the manufacturer’s own internal documents, Ben Jaffey KC, for the claimants, said that as far back as 2012 there was “a very clear recognition that Ford wasn’t using EGR [the exhaust gas recirculation system to reduce NOx] as much as possible”.Jaffey said: “The reality is that it was shaped to the requirements of the test and not much else?”Davies said: “It was calibrated in part to the requirements of the NEDC.” Changes to trap more NOx “would have been at the expense of the capture of other gases”.Documents shown in court also showed that NOx emissions from a Euro 5 transit van surged well beyond regulatory limits when the engine was tested inadvertently in sixth gear.The NEDC tests were normally carried out in fifth gear.
Sign up to Business TodayGet set for the working day – we'll point you to all the business news and analysis you need every morningafter newsletter promotionHowever, in real-world driving, Jaffey said, the vans’ gear shift indicator encouraged drivers to switch up to sixth gear, where the system to reduce NOx was ineffective, when the van reached speeds of 100km/h (62mph).“It’s hardly Grand Theft Auto, is it?” he said.The Ford models included as sample vehicles in the trial include the Mondeo, C-Max Fiesta and Focus cars as well as Transit vans.Ford denies having created defeat devices, and in its written submissions described the claim as “scientifically illiterate”.Its lawyers said that “a reduction in the effectiveness of NOx control may be a necessary, reasonable and justifiable engineering compromise to maintain overall system stability, protect components from damage, or control other, potentially more harmful, emissions”.
The three-month hearing that opened last month is examining vehicles sold by Ford and five other manufacturers – Mercedes, Renault, Nissan and Peugeot/Citroën.The “Dieselgate” scandal came to light after US scientists said in autumn 2015 that many of Volkswagen diesel engine cars had been equipped with software meant to deliberately falsify emissions tests.Millions of vehicles around the world were affected by the alleged misconduct, leading to car owners facing costs that collectively ran into hundreds of millions of euros.It is estimated to have led to thousands of deaths and cases of asthma in children.The trial continues.
Maureen McGinley obituary
My sister Maureen McGinley, who has died aged 77, was a member of the Order of Columban Sisters, a progressive Irish Catholic order whose nuns train as doctors, nurses and teachers before going abroad.While serving in Hong Kong, Maureen made a significant and pioneering contribution to the care of people who are HIV positive. In 1994 she founded the Society for Aids Care (SAC), the first non-governmental organisation of its kind in Asia. It continues its charitable work to this day. Maureen devoted her life to the welfare of the people of Hong Kong from 1976 until 1999
UK hospitals bracing for once-in-a-decade flu surge this winter
Hospitals are bracing for a once-in-a-decade flu season, with a mutated version of the virus that is spreading widely in younger people expected to drive a wave of admissions when it reaches the elderly.The threat has prompted NHS managers to redouble efforts to vaccinate staff and communities, expand same-day emergency care and treat more patients in the community to reduce the need for hospital stays.As resident doctors in England continue a five-day strike over pay, hospitals are turning to contingency plans to bring in consultants and other staff for extra shifts and reschedule appointments where necessary.“Last flu season was particularly nasty and we’re very concerned that this year could be even worse,” said Elaine Clancy, the group chief nursing officer for St George’s, Epsom and St Helier university hospitals. “We’re preparing for a spike of flu on to our wards
Resident doctors begin five-day strike in latest walkout over pay
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Peers to mount fresh offensive to halt assisted dying bill
Peers will mount a new offensive to halt the assisted dying bill on Friday, tabling almost 1,000 new amendments to the legislation in an effort to run down the clock.More than half of the 942 amendments have been tabled by just seven members of the House of Lords, all of them vocal opponents of assisted dying (AD). A source close to the bill said it was possible it could in effect get filibustered if peers pushed many amendments to a vote.The bill – which began as a private member’s bill from Labour MP Kim Leadbeater – passed the House of Commons in June and is now in the House of Lords.On Thursday night, 65 peers including two cabinet secretaries, the former Labour leader Neil Kinnock and the former Tory leader Ruth Davidson warned that it would be anti-democratic for the Lords to kill the bill after it had been passed by a reasonable majority in the Commons
Hospital consultants gearing up to join resident doctors in striking over pay
Hospital consultants are gearing up to join resident doctors in striking over pay in a move that could cause huge disruption for the NHS and present ministers with a major new headache.In addition, resident doctors – who will tomorrow embark on their latest strike – have decided to adopt a more militant approach in pursuit of their 26% pay claim in which they strike every month, to put pressure on the government.In a hardening of their tactics, resident – formerly junior – doctors will stage a walkout every month in 2026 if, as they expect, they get a fresh legal mandate to continue their long-running campaign of industrial action. They went on strike 11 times in 15 months between March 2023 and June 2024 but only once since, in July this year.Thousands of them will take part in what will be the 13th strike of their campaign, starting at 7am on Friday and running until 7am on Wednesday 19 November
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