US Government Takes Suzuki Motorcycles To Court Over Emissions Related Manipulation

Wayne Powell, as part of his job working for Suzuki Motorcycles, had the responsibility of submitting reports to the US government. The case against him filed on 2nd June 2017 alleged that he knowingly made false statements in an application for a certificate of conformity which was required in compliance with the clean air act.

The environmental protection agency in the USA follows a different style of controlling the emissions of motorcycles. Engine types of a particular manufacturer are grouped together and the average of that engine group's emissions is gauged to check if it complies with the clean air act.

The engine group average is gauged by the number of units sold, and hence manufacturers are required to submit a yearly report on sales. Every manufacturer is given a cap on the number of motorcycles that can be sold in any given engine group to ensure compliance with the clean air act.

The US government alleged that Powell initially filed a report stating that Suzuki had sold more motorcycles than allowed. His report went on to say that Suzuki would offset those emissions using banked emission credits and hence was still legal.

The EPA however, responded that Suzuki was not a member of the emissions credit banking program and hence would not be able to offset its excess emissions.

The real problem started when Powell alleged that there was something wrong with the computer software and filed an amendment to his initial report because there were a few figures which needed to be corrected.

The new report filing showed different production numbers for the four engine groups which earlier showed an excess, thus bringing the annual total into compliance with the clean air act.
The case was filed against Powell because the government believes the numbers filed in the amended report were manipulated. This case would not impact Suzuki directly, as the case was filed against Powell.

However, If during the investigations, higher-ups in Suzuki management are found to have had a role in the manipulation of these numbers, Suzuki Motorcycles in the USA would be in trouble. Suzuki would then also be penalised for selling more motorcycles than the limit.