WASHINGTON: US environmental regulators on Tuesday filed a lawsuit against automaker Fiat Chrysler, accusing the company of installing devices on its trucks that hid harmful emissions during testing.
The company kept the software's existence from regulators during the certification process for 104,000 3.0-liter light-duty diesel vehicles, according to the Environmental Protection Agency, which filed the charges in federal court in Michigan.
The latest legal action against a carmakers comes the same month that Germany's Volkswagen closed the last major US chapter of its own "dieselgate" saga, which in North America has cost that company $22 billion in settlements and compensation.
The EPA first made the cheating charge in January, which concerns Ram 1500 and Jeep Grand Cherokees from the 2014 to 2016 model years.
The Italian-American automaker said it was "disappointed" in the lawsuit and "intends to defend itself vigorously, particularly against any claims that the Company engaged in any deliberate scheme to install defeat devices to cheat US emissions tests."
Fiat said it had been working with the EPA on the issue, and already developed updated emissions software the company hoped would address the concerns of the EPA and California regulators.
The company already is facing class-action lawsuits over the alleged emissions cheating.
The Fiat lawsuite involves far fewer vehicles than the VW scandal, which involved11 million sold worldwide, but the complaint is similar as the devices allowed the vehicles to emit more than the permissible levels of nitrogen oxides, which contribute to smog and soot, according to the EPA.
The EPA said its lawsuit seeks fines and an injunction but that talks were continuing with Fiat to reach a settlement.
"The nature and timing of any resolution of this issue are uncertain," the agency said.
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