Cars to face on-road tests after Volkswagen global emission scandal

CHENNAI: Volkswagen's global emission scandal is all set to prompt a radical change in the way cars are tested in India. According to a top offici al in testing agency Automotive Research Association of India (ARAI), the thinking right now is to include measures that will prevent vehi cle manufacturers from cheating the mandatory emission test process. These will include taking the test car for an on-road run with some 'mobile testing device' on board apart from the current norm of making it go through specific driving cycles in laboratory conditions.

Auto industry experts say that the 'cheat software' in stalled by Volkswagen was such that the car could not be caught during laboratory tes ting. It could only be caught while taken for a road run.

Rashmi Urdhwareshe director, ARAI, said, "ARAI has an emission-measuring equipment, which can be mounted on a running vehicle to measure vehicular exhaust emissions. This data will have to be correlated with laboratory measurements, when the vehicle is driven on synthesised test cycle."

ARAI is currently conducting a detailed investigation into the Volkswagen issue to see the impact on its vehicle population in India.Explaining the test cycle for vehicles in India, she added, "All mandatory emission tests worldwide (including India) are carried out using specific driving cycles. The se cycles are a part of emission regulations (Euro V , Euro IV) as the case may be.In India, the test cycle is very similar. All vehicles are tested and approved as per the notified mandatory BSIV BSIII norms."

Auto industry experts say the reason why the VW cheat software was so difficult to catch was because it would simulate test conditions and make the car behave differently under those. "For a normal test agency under normal test conditions it is impossible to catch this out," said the R&D head of a top automobile manufacturer. "Nor would this device show up in the Conformity of Production (COP) tests conducted abroad by the vehicle manufacturer itself."

In India, though, two reasons could well have saved the day . First, COP is not a self-validation process in India as it is in the US, Europe and Japan. The testing agency randomly picks cars and tests them. Also, India's emission norms are far behind Europe or US.