United States
Environmental Protection
Agency
Office of Enforcement and
Compliance Assurance
(2201A)
EPA300-N-98-005
August 1998
&EPA
Volume 1, Number 2
ABOUT
Enforcement Alert
The Enforcement Alert is
published periodically by
EPA's Office of Regulatory
Enforcement. It informs and
educates the public and
regulated community of
important environmental
enforcement issues, recent
trends and significant
enforcement actions.
This information should help
the regulated community
anticipate and prevent
violations of federal
environmental law that could
otherwise lead to enforcement
action.
See Page 2 for useful EPA
Websites and additional
resources.
Eric V. Schaeffer
Director, Office of
Regulatory Enforcement
Enforcement Alert
Office of Regulatory Enforcement
Clean Air Act Prohibits
"Defeat Devices" in Vehicles, Engines
Honda to Spend $267Mil, Ford $7.8 Mil. to Settle Charges
Under the Clean Air Act (CAA) and
EPA regulations promulgated under the
Act, a manufacturer is prohibited from
selling or offering for sale any new
motor vehicle or motor vehicle engine
equipped with any device designed to
"defeat" the en-
gines ' emission '
control system.
On June 8, EPA
and DOJ jointly
announced major
settlements with
American Honda
Motor Company
and Ford Motor
Company, resolv-
ing charges that
both companies il-
legally sold ve- ^^^^^^^^^^
hides and engines
equipped with defeat devices that pre-
vent emission-control systems from
working properly. The two cases are
described below:
Honda Case
In the Honda case, the government
alleged that Honda disabled the misfire
monitoring device on 1.6 million 1996
and 1997 model year Accords, Civics,
Preludes, Odysseys, and Acuras, as well
as 1995 Honda Civics. The complaint
also alleged that Honda failed to report
this fact when applying for certificates
of conformity, a necessary prerequi-
site to selling motor vehicles in this
country.
http://www. epa.gov/oeca/enfalert
What the law requires:
Section 203 (a)(3)(b) of the Clean Air Act
(CAA), 42 U.S.C. Sec. 7522(a)(3)(b), prohib-
its the manufacture, selling, or installation of
any device that bypasses, defeats, or renders
inoperative a required element of the vehicle's
emissions control system.
Section 203 (a)(l) of the same Act also pro-
hibits the sale of motor vehicles or engines that
are not covered by valid certificates of con-
formity.
40 CFR Part 86, Subpart A describes the
regulatory requirements for defeat devices.
The misfire monitoring device is part
of an enhanced computer system,
known as the "On-Board Diagnostic
System (OBD)," which checks a
vehicle's emission performance when
the vehicle is in use. Since the misfire
device is disabled
during an engine
misfire, the
system's malfunc-
tion indicator light
will not operate.
Because the
vehicle's owner is
unaware that the
engine needs to be
serviced, increased
exhaust emissions
of hydrocarbons
and damage to the
vehicle's catalyst
may occur, and mechanics and smog-
check facilities will be deprived of in-
formation stored by the OBD system.
Under an agreement filed with the
U.S. District Court for the District of
Columbia, and a related agreement be-
tween Honda and the California Air
Resources Board, Honda will extend
the emissions warranty for all affected
models to 14 years/150,000 miles, pro-
vide an engine check and any warranty
repairs needed between 50,000 and
75,000 miles of use, and provide a free
tune up and oil change between 75,000
and 150,000 miles of use, at a cost to
Honda of at least $250 million. In ad-
dition, Honda will spend, under the fed-
continued on back
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Enforcement Alert
eral and state agreements, $17.1 mil-
lion, including $12.6 million in civil
penalties, and $4.5 million to imple-
ment environmental projects to reduce
pollution.
If Honda's violations had been left
undetected, EPA estimates that more
than 8,000 tons of hydrocarbons would
have been emitted into the atmosphere
by misfiring cars. Hydrocarbons are a
component of ozone, which can aggra-
vate respiratory conditions such as
asthma.
EPA commended Honda for its coop-
eration during the investigation. Honda
will notify owners of affected vehicles
three times during the life of the ve-
hicles.
Contact David E. Alexander,
(202) 564-2109.
Ford Case
In the Ford case, also filed in the U. S.
District Court for the District of Colum-
bia, the company will spend $7.8 mil-
lion to settle allegations that it violated
the CAA by illegally installing a device
that defeats the emission-control sys-
tem in 60,000 1997 Ford Econoline
vans.
The defeat device involved in this
case was a sophisticated electronic con-
trol strategy designed to enhance fuel
economy. According to EPA, the sys-
tem caused smog-causing nitrogen ox-
ide emissions to increase well beyond
the limits of the CAA emission stan-
dards when the vans are driven at high-
way speeds.
EPA estimates the settlement will pre-
vent thousands of tons of nitrogen ox-
ide from being released into the atmo-
sphere. The smog caused by nitrogen
oxide can aggravate asthma and cause
other respiratory problems.
The consent decree requires Ford to
deactivate the strategy in all affected
Econolines at an estimated cost of $ 1.3
million, pay $2.5 million in civil pen-
alties, purchase 2,500 tons of nitrogen
oxide credits valued at up to $2.5 mil-
lion to offset the excess emissions, and
spend $1.5 million on projects designed
to reduce future harmful pollutants in
the air.
Ford voluntarily stopped the sale of
the Econolines and deactivating the
strategy in March 1997 when notified
by EPA that the affected vans may be
in violation of the CAA. The company
also initiated a special service instruc-
tion to dealers to deactivate the strat-
egy in the vans when they are brought
to Ford dealerships for other services.
Ford cooperated with EPA and DOJ
during the entire investigation.
About 28 percent of the 60,000
Econoline vans equipped with the strat-
egy have been captured through Ford's
special service instruction to date. The
remainder will be recalled. Owners of
the affected vehicles will receive a re-
call notification letter from Ford. The
company will perform all recall work
free of charge at the convenience of the
vehicle's owner.
Ford has entered into a separate con-
sent decree with the California Air Re-
source Board. That decree required
Ford to recall the California-certified
Econolines and pay civil penalties of
$335,000.
Contact David J. Gottfried,
(202) 564-1019.
Useful Websites
EPA HOMEPAGE
http ://www. epa.gov/epahome
OFFICE OF AIR AND RADIATION
http://www.epa.gov/oar/oarhome.html
OFFICE OF MOBILE SOURCES
(MOTOR VEHICLES, FUELS, NONROAD
ENGINES)
http://www.epa.gov/omswww/omshome.htm
OFFICE OF MOBILE SOURCES
(AUTOMOBILES AND LIGHT TRUCKS)
http://www.epa.gov/OMSWWW/ld-hwy.htm
Enforcement Alert
Editor: Virginia Bueno, (202) 564-8684.
bueno.virginia@epamail.epa.gov.
Layout & design: Sarah Weaver,
wea ver. sarah @epamail. epa.go v.
&EPA
United States
Environmental Protection Agency
Office of Regulatory Enforcement
2201A
Washington, D.C. 20460
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Enforcement Alert
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