"EPA To Change Diesel Tests To Thwart VW-like Cheating"

"DETROIT — The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency plans sweeping changes to the way it tests for diesel emissions after getting duped by clandestine software in Volkswagen cars for seven years.

Chris Grundler, head of the EPA's office of transportation and air quality, indicated the agency would add on-road testing to its regimen. VW's sophisticated software allowed its cars to pass tests in the lab and then spew pollution into the atmosphere while on the highway.

The revelations meant unwanted scrutiny for the EPA. Its testing procedures have been criticized for being predictable and outdated, making it relatively easy for VW to cheat. What's more, the EPA did not initially uncover the problem; researchers at West Virginia University did, using on-road testing.

Grundler says the changes are designed to detect software and other methods automakers might use to rig a test."

Tom Krisher and Matthew Daly reports for the Associated Press September 25, 2015.