Volkswagen’s CEO has apologized after news that the German automaker has been deliberately cheating on smog tests. Since 2009, nearly 500,000 diesel-powered Audis and Volkswagens have been pre-installed with illegal software known as “defeat devices.” The software detects when the car is in for smog testing, and only then do emissions control systems kick in that allow the car to pass the test. But on the open road, the cars produce up to 40 times as much pollution as allowed by the Clean Air Act.
KCRW
