2013-2017 Audi, Volkswagen, Porsche, Bentley Gasoline-Powered Vehicles Overstated Fuel Economy Class Action

+ - Documents (14)

NOTICE OF A PROPOSED $4,950,000 FUEL RATING SETTLEMENT IN CANADA FOR ELIGIBLE 2013-2017 GASOLINE AUDI, BENTLEY, PORSCHE AND VOLKSWAGEN VEHICLES

This Notice May Affect Your Legal Rights — PLEASE READ IT CAREFULLY

This is a proposed Settlement of class actions alleging that the gasoline-powered Audi, Bentley, Porsche and Volkswagen vehicles listed in the attached Schedule and originally sold or leased in Canada (the “Eligible Vehicles”) are equipped with transmission software resulting in fuel ratings and greenhouse gas emissions of the Eligible Vehicles being higher than advertised.

The Settlement will, if approved by the courts, provide compensation to Class Members for additional fuel costs. The compensation received by Class Members would be paid out of the funds remaining from the $4,950,000 Settlement proceeds after deducting the court-approved legal fees and disbursements (including taxes) of Class Counsel (the “Legal Fees”), the costs of administering and distributing the Settlement, and amounts owing to Ontario’s Class Proceedings Fund.

Settlement Approval Hearings

The following court hearings will be held to decide whether to approve the proposed Settlement, which hearings are open to the public (the “Approval Hearings”):

Hearing of the Ontario Superior Court of Justice on December 14, 2020 at 10:00 a.m.ET

Hearing of the Superior Court of Québec on December 15, 2020 at 9:30 a.m. ET

Who is a Class Member?

Class Members consist of individuals and entities who currently reside in Canada or the United States and, as of October 5, 2020, own or owned an Eligible Vehicle or, alternatively, lease or leased an Eligible Vehicle from Volkswagen Finance, Audi Finance or Porsche Financial Services Canada (including PFSC GP d/b/a Bentley Financial Services Canada).

What Are the Options for Class Members?

1. Do nothing at this time: If you support the proposed Settlement, you do not have to do anything right now. By doing nothing, you will give up the right to object to the Settlement and, if it is approved by the courts, the right to bring your own legal proceeding in relation to the above-described software;

2. Support or Object to the proposed Settlement by December 4, 2020: Class Members may, but are not required to, submit a form advising whether they support or object to the proposed Settlement for consideration by the courts at the Settlement approval hearings. To explain why you support or object to the Settlement (including the $4,950,000 settlement proceeds and the distribution of those proceeds), please complete the Written Objection/Statement of Support Form (“Object/Support Form”) available at www.VWFuelEconomySettlement.ca and upload it to that site or mail it to Renk v. Audi Canada Inc. et al, c/o RicePoint Administration Inc., P.O. Box 4454, Toronto Station A, 25 The Esplanade, Toronto, ON M5W 4B1 postmarked by December 4, 2020.

3. Exclude yourself (opt out) by December 4, 2020: Class Members who exclude themselves from the class actions will not be bound by the Settlement or be able to share in its proceeds, but will retain their legal rights to bring their own legal proceeding. To opt-out, please complete the Opt-Out Form available at www.VWFuelEconomySettlement.ca and upload it to that site or mail it to Renk v. Audi Canada Inc. et al, c/o RicePoint Administration Inc., P.O. Box 4454, Toronto Station A, 25 The Esplanade, Toronto, ON M5W 4B1 postmarked by December 4, 2020. Class Members who reside in Québec must also send the Opt Out Form to the Clerk of the Superior Court of Quebec, Palais de Justice, 1, Notre-Dame Street East, Montreal (Quebec) H2Y 1B6, Court file No. 500-06-000828-166.

Unless they opt out, Class Members will be bound by the Settlement if approved by the courts, including the distribution of the Settlement proceeds. Class Members will need to submit a claim with proof of their ownership and/or lease of an Eligible Vehicle to receive a payment. Details for when and how to submit a claim will be provided at www.VWFuelEconomySettlement.ca.

Schedule of Eligible Vehicles and Maximum Payments

The Maximum Per Vehicle Payments provide compensation for additional fuel costs covering 96 months from the Eligible Vehicle’s in-service date. The Maximum Per Vehicle Payments are determined by multiplying the difference between the original and restated average fuel rating (known as the Combined rating) of the Eligible Vehicles by 1,666.67km/month, 96 months, and a negotiated fuel price of $1.35/L, plus an additional goodwill payment of 15% for any inconvenience to Class Members.

Class Members who hold active leases as of October 5, 2020 are entitled to compensation for the full duration of their lease.

Class Members who owned their Eligible Vehicle as of October 5, 2020 are entitled to compensation for the months that they owned their Eligible Vehicle and/or previously leased it, and may also be eligible for compensation for any future time remaining on the 96-month period.

If Class Members either leased their Eligible Vehicle with such lease having ended before October 5, 2020, and/or purchased and sold their Eligible Vehicle before October 5, 2020, such Class Members are entitled to a payment based on the number of months they possessed it, up to a total of 96 months.

Please note that compensation from the Settlement will be paid out to Class Members proportionately based on the number of participating Class Members up to the amount of the Maximum Per Vehicle Payments. Because of this proportionate distribution, it is not possible to estimate the individual payments to Class Members until all of the claims have been received and reviewed.

***UPDATE***

In the course of the investigation concerning defeat devices in Volkswagen’s diesel vehicles, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the California Air Resources Board (CARB) discovered that certain 2013-2017 Audi, Bentley, Porsche and Volkswagen vehicles employed software to manage transmissions in gasoline vehicles. This software caused the transmission to shift gears during the EPA-prescribed emissions test in a manner that sometimes optimizes fuel economy and greenhouse gas emissions during the test, but not under normal driving conditions. This resulted in inflated fuel economy values.

Following this EPA Report, which revised the fuel economy values for certain gasoline-powered vehicles, the following is a list of new vehicles that have been added to this class action:

Make	Model	Engine Capacity	Model Year
Audi	A8L	4.0L	2015
Audi	A8L	6.3L	2013
Audi	A8L	6.3L	2014
Audi	A8L	6.3L	2015
Audi	A8L	6.3L	2016
Audi	RS7	4.0L	2014
Audi	RS7	4.0L	2015
Audi	RS7	4.0L	2016
Audi	S8	4.0L	2013
Audi	S8	4.0L	2014
Audi	S8	4.0L	2015
Audi	S8	4.0L	2016
Bentley	Continental GT	4.0L	2013
Bentley	Continental GT	4.0L	2014
Bentley	Continental GT	4.0L	2015
Bentley	Continental GT	4.0L	2016
Bentley	Continental GT	4.0L	2017
Bentley	Continental GTC	4.0L	2013
Bentley	Continental GTC	4.0L	2014
Bentley	Continental GT Convertible	4.0L	2015
Bentley	Continental GT Convertible	4.0L	2016
Bentley	Continental GT Convertible	4.0L	2017
Bentley	Flying Spur	4.0L	2015
Bentley	Flying Spur	4.0L	2016
Bentley	Flying Spur	6.0L	2014
Bentley	Flying Spur	6.0L	2015
Bentley	Flying Spur	6.0L	2016
Porsche	Cayenne	3.6L	2013
Porsche	Cayenne	3.6L	2014
Porsche	Cayenne	3.6L	2016
Porsche	Cayenne GTS	3.6L	2016
Porsche	Cayenne GTS	4.8L	2013
Porsche	Cayenne GTS	4.8L	2014
Porsche	Cayenne S	3.6L	2015
Porsche	Cayenne S	3.6L	2016
Porsche	Cayenne S	4.8L	2013
Porsche	Cayenne S	4.8L	2014
Porsche	Cayenne Turbo	4.8L	2013
Porsche	Cayenne Turbo	4.8L	2014
Porsche	Cayenne Turbo S	4.8L	2014
Porsche	Cayenne Turbo S	4.8L	2016
Volkswagen	Tiguan 4MOTION	2.0L	2017
Volkswagen	Touareg	3.6L	2013
Volkswagen	Touareg	3.6L	2014

----------------------------------------

CONSUMER LAW GROUP has launched a Canada-wide class action lawsuit against Audi and Volkswagen relating to the use of a defeat device on its 3.0-litre gasoline models equipped with automatic transmissions.

The models years 2009 and up at issue are have either the AL551 or DL 501 automatic transmission and include:

- Audi A6
- Audi A8
- Audi Q5
- Audi Q7
- Audi S4
- Audi S5
- Audi S6
- Audi S7

It is alleged that Audi installed secret software that detects when the vehicle undergoes emissions and
mileage testing and, when this is detected, artificially reduces engine RPM (by operating in "low rev" mode), falsifies the fuel consumption and CO2 emissions. But otherwise, during normal driving operation, the defeat device deactivates and allows the vehicle to operate at higher revolutions per minute such that the vehicle has more power and acceleration, but also consumes more fuel and emits more carbon dioxide.

As a result of these "defeat devices", the actual CO2 emissions and fuel efficiency of consumers' vehicles are materially different from the representations that Audi made in their advertisements and marketing.

Consumers have suffered damages as a result of their purchases of these Audi vehicles, including but not limited to (a) overpayment for a vehicle that is incapable of performing as represented, (b) future additional fuel costs, (c) loss of performance from future repairs, and (d) diminution of vehicle value.

If you or someone you know is or was an owner or lessee of an Audi A6, A8, Q5, Q7, S4, S5, S6, or S7 models with 3.0-litre gasoline engine and an automatic transmission anywhere in Canada and you wish more information on potential compensation or to be kept advised of the status of the Audi 3.0-Litre Gasoline Automatic Transmission Defeat Device Canadian Class Action litigation or any resulting compensation from this lawsuit in Canada, Quebec, or Ontario, please provide your contact information to our law firm using the form below.

IF YOU WISH TO JOIN THE CLASS ACTION OR TO SIMPLY GET MORE INFORMATION, PLEASE COMPLETE THE FORM BELOW. Please note that providing your information creates no financial obligation for you. You are not charged any fee or cost for joining this class action. Our law firm is paid a contingency fee from the compensation recovered, only if the class action is successful. All information contained in this transmission is confidential and Consumer Law Group agrees to protect this information against unauthorized use, publication or disclosure.