第2889期: Volkswagen scandal

We're talking about the Volkswagen scandal. Yes, well, let's go back to the beginning. How did it all start? Well, Richard, if you think about it, German products, they have a good reputation, don't they? Especially for engineering, yes.

我们在谈论大众汽车丑闻。是的，那我们回到事情的起点吧。一切是如何开始的呢？理查德，如果你仔细想想，德国产品的口碑一直很好，对吧？尤其是在工程技术方面，是的。

And I think the motor car industry represents the best of all of that. Yes, they're reliable, well-designed, efficient, highly engineered. Who doesn't want to own a BMW? Or a Mercedes.

我认为汽车工业正是这些优点的最佳体现。是的，它们可靠、设计精良、高效，而且工程技术含量极高。谁不想拥有一辆宝马？或者一辆奔驰呢？

But in terms of being environmentally friendly, diesel cars have a poor reputation, particularly in the US, where very few are sold. So, yes, so when VW said that it had designed cars with a new clean diesel technology that surpassed the strict US regulations, it filled a huge hole in the market. Yes, so there are fewer fumes, Richard, toxic fumes.

但是在环保方面，柴油车的名声并不好，尤其是在美国，柴油车的销量非常少。所以，当大众汽车宣称他们设计出了一种新的清洁柴油技术，能够超越美国严格的环保法规时，这正好填补了市场上的一个巨大空白。是的，这意味着废气更少了，理查德，有毒废气更少了。

It's mainly... Nitrogen oxide, carbon monoxide, things like that. OK, but retaining better fuel efficiency and excellent performance. I mean, VW was on to a winner, wasn't it? Sales were soaring.

主要是……氮氧化物、一氧化碳之类的东西。好吧，但同时还能保持更好的燃油效率和出色的性能。我的意思是，大众汽车当时似乎找到了制胜法宝，不是吗？销量一路飙升。

And, of course, their US advert said, Diesel – it's no longer a dirty word. So, step in John German, a worker for a small, independent, non-profit organisation dedicated to helping reduce vehicle emissions. Yes, he was asked by his European colleague to check the emissions of two diesel VWs because they wanted to carry out on-the-road testing in the US.

当然，他们在美国的广告中还说：“柴油——不再是一个肮脏的词。”于是，约翰·杰曼登场了，他在一家小型、独立的非营利组织工作，致力于帮助减少车辆排放。是的，他的一位欧洲同事请他检测两辆大众柴油车的排放情况，因为他们想在美国进行道路实测。

So, he took two VW cars and a BMW also for a drive with a probe placed in the exhaust pipe so they could test the vehicle emissions. Yeah, and a portable emission measurement system. And he found out that the VWs massively exceeded the official emissions.

于是，他开着两辆大众汽车和一辆宝马上路测试，在排气管中放置了探头，以便检测车辆排放。是的，还使用了一套便携式排放测量系统。结果他发现，大众汽车的排放量远远超过了官方标准。

Remembering that we have two German cars here and their reputation for reliability, he thought there was a technical error with his measurement system. So, he did the tests again, he expanded the tests, and this time the cars were driven more than 1,200 miles from San Diego to Seattle. So, what he found was that the VWs, they still exceeded the US standards by up to 35 times.

想到这里测试的是两辆德国车，而德国车一向以可靠著称，他以为是自己的测量系统出了技术故障。于是他重新进行了测试，并扩大了测试范围，这一次车辆从圣迭戈一路开到西雅图，行驶了超过1200英里。结果他发现，大众汽车的排放仍然高出美国标准，最高甚至达到了35倍。

Although the BMW itself was fine. Was absolutely fine. So, to cut a long story short, we now know that VW had installed a defeat device software that gave inaccurate measurements when the cars were being tested.

而宝马本身则完全没有问题，确实是完全合格的。长话短说，我们现在知道，大众汽车安装了一种“作弊装置”软件，在车辆接受检测时会给出不准确的排放数据。

But only when they were tested in laboratory conditions, not when they were out on the road. Yeah, somehow the car knows it's being tested, maybe because the steering wheel isn't being turned, or maybe because the outside temperature doesn't change. But once on the road, however, the software doesn't kick in and the true emissions could be detected.

但这种情况只发生在实验室条件下的检测中，而不是在实际道路行驶时。是的，不知怎么的，汽车似乎知道自己正在被测试，可能是因为方向盘没有转动，或者因为外界温度没有变化。但一旦上路行驶，这套软件就不会启动，真实的排放情况就暴露出来了。

Yeah, so it means for the last two years, there have been far more harmful emissions coming out of these VW cars in America than before. So, VW faces huge fines for breaking the Clear Air Act, plus fines of up to over $37,000 per vehicle in the US. So, is this the end of VW, Richard?

是的，这意味着在过去两年里，这些大众汽车在美国排放出了比以前多得多的有害气体。因此，大众汽车因违反《清洁空气法》将面临巨额罚款，而且在美国每辆车的罚款最高可能超过3.7万美元。那么，这会是大众汽车的终结吗，理查德？