Navistar Looses Bid to Force EPA Recall

[DriVer]

Navistar loses bid to force EPA recall

Greg Gerber posted on January 23, 2012 12:52
RV D@aily Report

WASHINGTON -- A federal judge ruled last week that Navistar can't force environmental regulators to recall products made by competitors that allegedly cause more pollution, Courthouse News reported today.

Navistar, which manufactures an exhaust-regulation technology to control admissions, hoped to force the Environmental Protection Agency to recall its competitors' Model Year 2010 heavy-duty diesel engines, according to Courthouse News. Those engines are equipped with a competing technology that Navistar claims does not comply with emissions standards promulgated under the Clean Air Act.

U.S. District Judge Colleen Kollar-Kotelly to dismiss Navistar's complaint Tuesday for failure to state a claim. she also rejected Navistar's request for discovery and allowed intervention by the competing manufacturers that rely on selective catalyst reduction technology to meet EPA standards.

According to Courthouse News, Navistar asked the court to grant it significant discovery related to "the actual or potential non-conformance" of the engines, including "any emissions-related testing," "any mandatory or voluntary recall[s]," and "any other actual or proposed action to address any non-conformity, failure, problem, [or] malfunction."

To read the full story in Courthouse News, click here.

[RedneckExpress]

Total bucket O' Bull.

[wa8yxm]

Actually it's standard corporate activity. IF in fact the competitor's engines do not meet the federally mandated design goals, THEN they should be recalled.. IF it can be shown that the company that made them KNEW THEY DID NOT MEAT the design goals, and fudged the data to get 'em approved (Which by the way is very common in assorted industries, INCLUDING A COUPLE WHERE I HAVE VERY PERSONAL INTEREST (as in I need those products to stay alive).... Well that lying piece of corportation should be sent all the way to bankruptcy by the resulting fines and the board of directors sent to a nice secluded hotel say just outside of NOME where they can meditate on the error of their ways for 20 years or so while all their worldly goods are sold to pay the fines.

But, alas, even when the fact of the fraud is very well known, and very well documented, This simply does not happen.

Now.. that said.. I have no way of knowing if the "Competitors" mentioned are making engines that are compliant or not.. I suspect not (Having done some research) but I can not be sure. Neither can Navistar, without the requested documents or a whole lot of competitor's engines in their shop.

I did, however, read some of the allegations, and some of the research and given my limited training I feel Navistar has a point...

As I understand it Navistar engines are compliant and with normal maintenance will remain so for a long time... The competitors engines may be compliant when they leave the sales floor, but compliance quickly fails, and they require far more maintenance including some special stuff to remain compliant.

That said... I drive a gasser.

[Mr_D]

Looks like a junk suit to force the competitors to license Navistar's technology.

[DriVer]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Mr_D Looks like a junk suit to force the competitors to license Navistar's technology.

I don't think so, why would they want them to do that?

Both camps have merit. Navistar does in in-cylinder with 2012 technology engines and no DEF whereas the other group does it with good solid engines and bolt on downstream emission control devices using DEF. Both currently use credits but that is going to come to an end pretty soon due to financial penalties.

The basis of the suit seeks to level the playing field. If Navistar claims to be compliant 100% of the time (or close to it) then any competitor that produces 2010 emissions compliant engines must also deliver the same percentage of compliance. If that's the case, then I think it's all good.