Ford Becomes Newest Target of Diesel Emissions Cheat Lawsuit

Ford and Bosch are accused of conspiring to hide the heavy emissions from scrutineers, by way of programming the computer to detect when the vehicle is undergoing emissions testing. Programming of this nature, referred to as a "defeat device," was used as part of Volkswagen's emissions cheating systems.

This lawsuit could not arrive at a worse time for Ford, as the company announced that the F-150 will receive the option of a 3.0-liter diesel engine on Monday, with its quip, "you're welcome, truck fans," in the reveal now opening the company to embarrassment. The untimely surfacing of this lawsuit may taint customer perspectives on this new engine.

The Drive reached out to Ford for comment on the lawsuit, and for information on how it is expected to affect Ford's current and future diesel offerings.

"All Ford vehicles, including those with diesel engines, comply with all U.S. EPA and CARB emissions regulations," stated a Ford spokesperson to The Drive, "Ford vehicles do not have defeat devices. We will defend ourselves against these baseless claims."

"The F-150 diesel goes on sale this spring, as we previously announced."

Aside from alleged emissions violations, recalls have also plagued Ford trucks in the last several weeks. Loose seats prompted a 200,000 vehicle recall in December, and a 153,000 vehicle recall for transmission problems could be expanded to encompass 1.4 million vehicles. On the brighter side, the cause of head gasket issues in the Focus RS was unearthed in late December so Ford can chalk up at least one problem solved.