VW customers report power loss after dieselgate NOx emissions fix
VOLKSWAGEN customers in the UK are reporting a loss of power since having their cars fixed after the dieselgate emissions scandal.
VOLKSWAGEN
VW customers who have had their car fixed following the diesel emissions scandal have reported a loss of power at high speeds, a law firm claims.
More than one in 10 Volkswagen customers who had their cars fixed following the diesel emissions scandal have experience power loss, according to Slater and Gordon.
Some drivers claimed that they had been forced to swerve across two lanes of motorway traffic when the incidents occur.
The law firm surveyed the 40,000 car owners it represents who are seeking compensation over the use of software to cheat pollution tests.
Of the 11,600 respondents who have had their car fixed by Volkswagen, over 1,200 claimed their vehicles had lost power while on a motorway or busy road.
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Semina Mohammed, 37, was driving her VW Golf TDI on the M56 near Chester a few days after undergoing the fix when the car juddered to a halt.
The secondary school teacher, from Altrincham, Cheshire, said: "I've never been that frightened in the car before. I genuinely feared for my life.
"I was in the outside lane, overtaking another car, and suddenly I felt the power dropping.
"I managed to get across. If there had been a car next to me I wouldn't have been able to."
In addition to this a fifth of drivers have suffered reduced fuel efficiency since the fix and eight per cent have had more than five separate malfunctions.
There is no legal basis for customer claims in connection with the diesel matter
Slater and Gordon lawyer Gareth Pope said: "It has been over two years since the scandal was exposed and UK consumers have waited in vain for Volkswagen to respond to their complaints fairly.
"VW's only response has been to offer consumers in the UK a fix that our clients are telling us doesn't work.
"The survey results are deeply troubling."
Since the September 2015 VW scandal there have been growing concerns over nitrogen dioxide emissions.
The dieselgate scandal is said to have affected over 11 million diesel vehicles worldwide, with 1.2 million in the UK.
The next hearing in a UK civil claim against the German firm takes place at the Royal Courts of Justice on Tuesday.
A Volkswagen Group UK spokesman said: "There is no legal basis for customer claims in connection with the diesel matter.
"Our UK customers have not suffered any loss or damage as a result of the NOx issue.
"The vehicles are safe and roadworthy, and perform as advertised."
The voluntary fix has been implemented on around 840,000 affected UK vehicles, with the "overwhelming majority of customers in question fully satisfied", the spokesman added.