Germany's car watchdog sets Audi ultimatum to remove illegal diesel software: report

Germany's car watchdog sets Audi ultimatum to remove illegal diesel software: report

FILE PHOTO: Front of an A6 TDI diesel model of German car manufacturer Audi is pictured at a car wash in Hanau, Germany, October 16, 2018. REUTERS/Kai Pfaffenbach - RC1CE2ABE600/File Photo

BERLIN (Reuters) - Germany's motor vehicle authority (KBA) has told Volkswagen's premium brand Audi that it faces penalties for its failure to remove illegal software from diesel cars that can manipulate emissions levels, the Bild am Sonntag (BamS) newspaper reported.

BamS added that the KBA had told Audi in three letters that it had until Sept. 26 to remove the software from thousands of diesel vehicles with V6 and V8 TDI engines or else face a fine of 25,000 euro for each car still carrying an illegal device.

The transport ministry said last year that the KBA watchdog had detected illicit emission-control software in some 127,000 Audi models with Euro-6 diesel engines, including 77,600 cars in Germany.

A spokesman for the KBA did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the report.

A spokesman for Audi said the carmaker was getting closer to upgrading the remaining 8% of the cars in question and that it would complete the mission by the KBA-set deadline.

"By no means will we confirm the BamS report," the spokesman wrote in an email.

The transport ministry said last year that the KBA watchdog had detected illicit emission-control software in some 127,000 Audi models with Euro-6 diesel engines, including 77,600 cars in Germany.

Audi had said that those models had been included in a voluntary recall of 850,000 diesel vehicles with V6 and V8 TDI engines.

(Reporting by Joseph Nasr; Editing by Raissa Kasolowsky)