EPA Continues Crackdown on Car ‘Defeat Devices’

Last month, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) revealed that stopping the installation of defeat devices in vehicles and engines continues to be one of its top enforcement priorities.

According to the authors, such defeat devices are “aftermarket parts or software, such as modified exhaust systems or chip tuning products and services, that hinder or bypass vehicle emissions controls.” Motor Trend.

On June 4, 2024, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced enforcement actions against two companies allegedly selling these types of security deception devices.

The first settlement was with Thoroughbred Performance Products of Winchester, Kentucky (d/b/a Thoroughbred Diesel), in response to EPA claims that the company illegally sold thousands of aftermarket products that disable vehicle emission control systems. As part of the settlement, Thoroughbred Diesel agreed to stop selling the defeat devices and pay a civil penalty of $1,250,000.

Thoroughbred Diesel also agreed to confirm that it has ceased selling defeat devices for vehicle emissions control systems and to remove from its websites and social media accounts any advertisements, images, videos or information relating to the manipulation, sale, offer to sell and/or installation of defeat devices.

The second action was the announcement that Full Force Diesel Performance, Inc. (FFDP), a Murfreesboro, Tennessee-based automotive aftermarket parts distributor, was assessed a civil penalty of $525,438 to settle claims that the company allegedly sold illegal “defeat devices” designed to disable automobile emission control systems in violation of the federal Clean Air Act (CAA).

As part of the settlement, FFDP agreed to confirm that it has ceased selling defeat devices for vehicles and has removed from its websites and social media accounts all advertisements, images, videos and information relating to the manipulation, sale, offer to sell and/or installation of defeat devices.

“Cracking down on sellers of illegal defeat devices is a top enforcement priority for EPA,” Acting Regional Administrator Jeaneanne Gettle said in an EPA news release. “These illegal practices contribute to harmful air pollution and hinder federal, state and local efforts to implement air quality standards that protect public health. Mobile source emissions are particularly important in EPA’s Southeast Region, and the use of these defeat devices makes it difficult for us to comply with National Ambient Air Quality Standards (NAAQS).”

Tampering with vehicle engines, including the installation of devices to circumvent manufacturer emission controls, results in significantly higher emissions of nitrogen oxides (NOx) and particulate matter (PM), which contribute to serious public health problems in the United States. These problems include premature mortality, exacerbation of respiratory and cardiovascular disease, exacerbation of existing asthma, acute respiratory symptoms, chronic bronchitis, and reduced lung function. Numerous studies also link diesel exhaust to an increased incidence of lung cancer.

One EPA study found that sales of defeat devices designed for certain diesel trucks between 2009 and 2020 resulted in emissions of more than 570,000 tons of excess NOx and 5,000 tons of excess PM over the lifetime of those trucks.

“EPA is concerned, within its enforcement discretion, about the sale and use of replacement parts that increase emissions,” states an EPA fact sheet on defeat and manipulation devices. “EPA generally does not take any enforcement action for the sale and use of replacement parts if the person can demonstrate a reasonable basis to know that such use will not adversely affect emissions performance.”

Proof of “reasonable basis” includes:

1. A replacement part is identical in construction and function to the part it replaces.
2. The modified vehicle meets emissions standards by conducting the same tests used by the original vehicle manufacturer to achieve EPA certification.
3. By submitting a California Air Resources Board (CARB) implementing regulation that covers the same device and the same vehicle in which the device is installed.

To ensure your business is compliant, before you start selling replacement parts, make sure you have proof that the parts will not increase emissions.

To ensure compliance with the regulations following the installation of replacement parts, you must provide evidence that the vehicle will return to its original factory configuration once fitted or evidence that the parts will not cause any increase in emissions.

Penalty amounts

Violations of the CAA anti-tamper and defeat device regulations can result in penalties of up to statutory civil penalties. As of January 13, 2020, the statutory civil penalties are $48,192 per violating vehicle or engine for manufacturers and dealers, and $4,819 per violating vehicle or engine or defeat device for anyone other than a manufacturer or dealer.