European Court of Justice confirms: Thermal windows are illegal defeat devices
Hundreds of thousands of vehicles in Europe are affected.
With a bang, the ECJ opens up legal protection and legal action options for many thousands Mercedes, BMW and Opel buyers that include so-called thermal windows. This refers to software that switches off the exhaust gas purification system in certain temperature ranges. In more detail, the defeat device switches off the exhaust gas purification system if the outside temperature is not between 15 and 33 C° and the vehicle is not driven below 1000 meters altitude. If the temperature is below this or the vehicle is driven in a terrain above 1000 meters altitude, the exhaust gas purification system is switched off, so that exhaust gases are emitted unfiltered.
The ECJ has now ruled (Case C-134/29): Thermal windows are not permitted under European law and are therefore illegal. The use of the window violates European environmental regulations with regard to newly registered motor vehicles. The decision is noteworthy in that it opens up the possibility for many buyers to more effectively assert claims for damages regarding vehicles with thermal windows.
ECJ puts a stop to dubious argumentation by manufacturers and opens up the possibility of legal action
Before this decision, many courts were able to argue that the thermal window was a generally illegal defeat device, but that it was necessary to protect the engine and was therefore permissible as an exception. The ECJ has now put a stop to this argument. Many of those affected can now breathe a sigh of relief. As a rule, the chances of successful lawsuits were considered rather slim, as long as the issue was thermal windows and not the previous inadmissible defeat device known as test bench detection.
The ruling is easy to understand. The result of the thermal window described above is that the exhaust gas purification system no longer works at all on average in Northern Europe. This is because the average temperature in northern Europe is well below the 15°C at which the thermal window operates. In the end, this means that the corresponding vehicles in Northern Europe operate without effective exhaust gas purification. As a result, they pollute the environment to a considerably greater extent than prescribed, and this, mind you, in times when the fight against climate change should be at the forefront.
ECJ decision embarrasses German authorities
But the ECJ also disgraces the German authorities. This is because the German Federal Motor Transport Authority in particular had previously still considered the thermal windows to be permissible and had also still allowed them as part of the software updates for the old impermissible defeat devices, thereby allowing the emissions scandal to be further concealed from many thousands of those affected.
With the decision, it is also to be expected that the car manufacturers will be further overrun with lawsuits, as this has made it easier to enforce the law. This applies in particular to vehicles from the Baltic States and Finland. If you have purchased such a vehicle and are interested or if you are not sure whether you are affected by the thermal window, we will be happy to advise you on this.
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